Buried
by Un-Ended Tales Unravel
Summary: Camelot has been invaded by monsters of the worst kind, and the only one powerful enough to save them is Merlin. But he's dead. Isn't he?
1. Invasion of the Beasts

**Here is a new story that I have been meaning to write. I know I'm in the middle of writing another one as well but I couldn't help it. I like writing two stories at once.**

**Anywho, please read and enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin  
**

Invasion of the Beasts

The castle shook. Pieces of the ceiling came loose, crashing to the ground. Cracks appeared in the windows, becoming bigger and bigger. Camelot was falling apart but still he kept walking, his boots connecting purposefully with the ground as he headed towards the throne room. His sword was strapped to his side and his left hand rested on it as if any moments something would jump out of the shadows and he would be forced to unsheathe it.

His armor did nothing to slow him down either. One of the servants had helped him into it several days before and there hadn't been a moment of peace where he felt it was safe enough to take it off. He wore the colours of Camelot with pride but the lion had become torn and disfigured with scorch marks.

He rounded a corner and came face to face with the doors to the throne room. Without hesitation he heaved them open and made his entrance. A long table had been placed in the middle and there were many knights crowded around it. Maps were strewn across the table and the men pointed at them and argued. They were so deep in conversation that they did not notice him enter the room until he came to the head of the table and banged on it loudly with his gauntlet.

The knights looked up. The only woman in the room, who had been arguing with one of the other knights, came to stand next to him. Her usual gown had been replaced with armor of her own. He had had it specially made for her after she had been crowned, for her protection.

"Are there any new developments?" He asked the knights.

"A few more of them have been spotted terrorizing the lower town. We haven't been able to identify the beasts yet your Majesty." One of the knights reported.

"Thank you Sir Leon." He bowed his head to the man who did the same in return. "How are the evacuations coming along?" He turned to another knight, waiting for him to speak up.

"Most are being taken to villages near by." He gave his report. "But there are still a few trapped that we haven't been able to get to."

"Very good Sir Elyan. Keep working on getting to them." His eyes swiveled around the room waiting for anyone else to add on to these reports. Some of them were forced to look away at the force of his stare. There was something else.

"We lost a few more knights today." One of them finally spoke. "They fought valiantly and their efforts saved lives."

The King lowered his head, looking away from Sir Percival who had spoken. Every day there were more and more fatalities; many of them were his knights. They wouldn't be able to go on much longer like this. Soon Camelot would be completely overrun with these monsters.

"Has the cause been found yet?" He voiced the question he asked every time he came before his knights.

"No, my King." The knights looked tired and defeated, but this menace that plagued their city did not give any time for wrest. They were forced to be on alert every moment of the day and every second of the night. Darks bags hung under all of their eyes.

"Sir Gwaine." The knight's head popped up at the mention of his name. "Call Gaius to go to my chambers. I wish to speak with him."

The knight bowed and quickly exited the throne room without a word. It was unlike Gwaine to be so quiet. Even in the deadliest of situations you could always count on him to make a joke to lighten the mood. He didn't laugh anymore like he used to. He didn't even drink. He had been sober for about a year. Most people drank when things got hard, but with Gwaine it was the opposite. He stopped drinking.

The last year had changed all of them. So much had happened. The most recent of which had been the invasion of the beasts. The monsters had first appeared in the city a month ago in small numbers. Those were easy to take care of. Then they started to come in packs and more frequently. They had barely finished off the first batch when the next one would arrive. No wrest for the weary.

Then they began to lose men and the monsters became stronger and more bloodthirsty. Now it seemed almost impossible to keep the monsters at bay. A couple weeks ago they had decided to evacuate the city. It was becoming too dangerous for anyone to stay within the city walls.

Getting the people out was easier said then done. They had to fight their way to even get close to the citizens of Camelot. Many of them were still trapped. His knights were spread thin. Soon enough there would be only a few of them left.

The King swept out of the throne room and up the stairs to his chambers. As soon as he was gone the other knights went back to their arguing. Not long after the Queen too exited the room to follow him.

He really shouldn't call them his chambers anymore. The room was wrecked and destroyed. Barely anything remained to give evidence that he had once slept peacefully in here. The glass of the window was completely gone, smashed. Everything else had been either burned or crushed beyond recognition.

He found a pile of burned wood and sat down on it, waiting for the physician to arrive. He placed his head in his hands. How much longer would they last? He didn't like to admit it but they may have to abandon Camelot in the end. If they wanted to keep their lives then that seemed to be the best option. Fighting for a ruined city was almost pointless. If they could defeat the monsters then they would rebuild, but the chances of that were dwindling more and more every day.

It was hard to imagine abandoning his home, the place he had lived all his life, but it was a sacrifice that might have to be made in order to protect his people.

So much had changed in the last year. One tragedy came after another. He had lost so many people that he cared about. There were so many faces that he would never see again. There was Sir Lancelot, his father and…

A knock came at the door. The King lifted his head and called for them to enter. An old man made his way into the room followed by Sir Gwaine. They stood before their King and bowed slightly. Gwaine went to leave.

"Gwaine you can stay. There is no reason why you should not hear this." Gwaine turned back to face his King.

"You called for me sire." The old man spoke, his voice worn and tired.

"Thank you for coming Gaius. I'm sorry to pull you away from your patients, but I have to know. Have you found anything?"

"I'm afraid that I do not know what has caused these beasts to arrive all at once." They had decided long ago that all of the monsters attacking the city at the same time were not coincidences. There had to be a reason, something behind it all.

"There has to be something we can do. Some way to fight them."

Gaius lowered his head. They had been over this several times. The physician had searched and searched through his many books in order to find a reason for this strange gathering and maybe a way to stop them, but Gaius had grown tired. He no longer possessed the same spark as he did a year ago. He had trouble remembering all of the knowledge he had collected over the years.

Gaius was becoming old. Soon the King would not be able to rely on his counsel in times like these.

Another knock came at the door. "Come in." The King called out.

The door opened to reveal the Queen. Her long black hair was tied up and, like all of the knights; her hand was always on her sword. She made her way across the room until she was standing next to her husband who stood to meet her. She placed her gloved hand on his arm reassuringly. He could always count on her to be there for him and to pick him up when he was down.

He had tried to convince her to leave with the others but she had refused and that was the end of it. He was yet to win an argument against his wife.

"Continue Gaius." She looked to the old physician.

"As I was saying, there is nothing in my books that can explain this phenomenon. I have looked through every book, reading every note, but still I have found nothing to counter it. This could have been brought on by sorcery."

"We have considered that before." The King nodded.

"Even in the forbidden texts there is no spell powerful enough to bring them all here though. If there were one then I would guess that it would take a tremendous amount of magical power to even attempt it. Not even Morgana was that powerful."

The room went silent for a moment at the mention of the witch, the King's half sister. A couple years back they had finally been able to reach her and persuade her that the path she had taken was wrong. There was another way. The possibility that, together, they could create a world where peace was possible.

She had joined the King shortly after. The ban on magic was still active but the King was becoming more lenient. They held real trials. Only those who misused their powers were convicted now.

Things were just starting to go back to the way they were in the good days. Morgana started to laugh again. Even with all of the tragedies there was still hope for happier times. Morgana had become one of his advisers. Camelot thrived under their rule. He had come to refer to her as his sister and not his half sister.

Then the invasion began and everything fell apart. The last week had been the worst, with the most fatalities. Brave people. People he knew.

A tear fell from the King's eye. It had been two whole days. Two whole days since Morgana had fallen in battle. He had been there; close enough to see the light leave her eyes. She had sacrificed herself to save him. He would never forget that. Even after everything she had done in the past. Even with all that hatred she had held for them.

There had been a time when he would have been relieved to see her go, but now he felt nothing but sorrow. They had come to care for her again and she had done the same in return. Everyone mourned her passing.

They had not been able to bring her body back to the castle. The King hated to think of her laying out there somewhere, alone. The knights had had to drag him away from her when he refused to leave. If they had retreated earlier she might still be here. She deserved an honorable funeral. They all did.

"Arthur." He heard the sweet sound of his wife's voice, bringing him back to reality.

"At the moment Magic seems to be the only possible answer, but no one could have done it on their own, maybe a group of sorcerers. If they still practiced the ways of the Old Religion. That magic is more powerful then that of today's."

"Would it be possible to get a group together to break the enchantment?" Gwaine mused.

"That would take time, and the only magic users we know of are the Druids, but they would never fight. I don't want to bring them into this anyway. It could put them in danger." Arthur pointed out.

"There are others, but we wouldn't be able to get a message out to them in time. They may already know what is happening here." Gwen added.

"If there were such a group of sorcerers who might have brought this upon us, then they would have to have something in the city perhaps to draw in the monsters." Gaius noticed.

"Then all we would have to do was find it and destroy it." Arthur looked up with hope.

"Yes, but I can find nothing on such an object that, by using magic with it, would be able to do such a thing. Even then it would no be so easy to destroy."

"At least it's an idea."

"But Arthur, we are spread too thin. We have no one to go looking for it. We wouldn't even know where to start if we don't know what we're looking for." Gwaine sighed.

Arthur's hope vanished. Gaius sighed loudly, drawing his attention.

"What?" He asked, knowing there was something on the old man's mind.

"I never mentioned this before but there is one person that could have been powerful enough to break this curse."

"Who?" Gwen piped up.

Gaius sighed again and looked around to the other people in the room. They all looked expectantly at him.

"Merlin."

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	2. Shadow

**Here we are with the next chapter. **

**Hope you enjoy.**

Shadow

Arthur, Gwen, and Gwaine stared at Gaius in shock. He could not be serious. That just wasn't possible. Merlin had been many things, but powerful had never been one of them, especially that powerful. He was the clumsy servant who always complained.

"But Gaius, surely you jest." Arthur scoffed. The old man merely shook his head and the others' jaws dropped.

"We know Merlin had magic but he couldn't have had that much power. Think about it, this is Merlin we are talking about." Arthur continued.

"Yes this is Merlin we are talking about." Gwaine spoke up. "We have already been wrong about him once. Isn't it possible that we are now?"

"We found out that Merlin had been protecting Camelot from the shadows since he arrived here. That was a long time to be keeping secrets. Even I didn't know and I knew him the longest." Gwen pointed out.

"You all did learn Merlin's biggest secret but there is still much you haven't been told. He was more then just Camelot's secret protector. He had a great destiny." Gaius revealed.

"What kind of destiny?" Arthur asked warily.

"Have you ever heard the prophecies of the Once and Future King?"

"No." All three answered in unison.

"Well it was said that the Once and Future King and the warlock Emrys would work together to bring about a time of peace, the time of Albion. In this new world magic would be free."

"What does that prophecy have to do with Merlin?" Gwen asked.

"The prophecy is closer then you can imagine my dear. After all, the one the Druids call Emrys was very close to you all."

"Who was it?" Arthur still wasn't getting it.

"Really my boy. Put the peaces together. Whom have we been talking about for the past five minutes?" Their eyes widened.

"You don't mean?" Gwaine muttered.

"Yes I do. He was Merlin."

"Then who was the Once and Future King?" Arthur tried to find the last piece to the puzzle.

"He was, is, and always will be you, Arthur." There was more shock and disbelief.

"Why did you never tell us Gaius?" Gwaine asked.

"You can't force destiny to happen. You had to discover on your own. I thought things were beginning to come together. Albion was slowly being created. This wasn't supposed to happen."

"How do you know this wasn't destined to happen?" Gwen let go of her husband's arm. "Perhaps this is a part of destiny. Something we need to get through if Albion is to come into existence."

"Maybe you are right my dear." Gaius shrugged. "Not everything can be foretold. We can't always know what is going to happen."

The others knew what he was referring to. Their heads lowered, remembering. It had been almost a years since that fateful day.

Arthur had been with his knights fighting a threat on the battlefield outside the gates to the city. An old crone had summoned a shadow army to try and take down Camelot. You would think that all of the threats that had come along for the great city that this one wouldn't have been any different. Oh they were so wrong.

Metal struck metal as they fought the strange creatures. Arthur fought back to back with his wife, both dressed in armor. That was the first time she had worn the armor the King had made for her. Now that she was Queen she believed that it was also her duty to fight for Camelot. It was her responsibility to protect her people now.

Arthur had at first forbidden it, but she managed to lecture him into letting her come along. She had been taught how to fight by the best knights. She had fought countless times with her brother when they were younger. Gwen felt ready, but no one is ever ready for their first real battle.

She had stuck close to Arthur's side, watching how he fought. Soon enough she picked up on a few of his moves, using them to her advantage. Then instinct kicked in and she was flying across the battlefield, ducking and dodging.

Not too far from the royal couple magic blazed as Morgana blasted enemy after enemy. They could barely get close to her without feeling the sting of her magic. She created a disc of green fire and spun it into a crowd of the shadows, slicing them in half. They disappeared in puffs of smoke.

The old crone was nowhere to be seen, controlling her minions from an unknown location. The shadows just kept coming but soon their numbers began to dwindle. The soldiers of Camelot were starting to get the upper hand in this battle. Soon all of the shadows would be gone and Camelot and its people would be safe again.

Her cry rang out through the air with frustration. She used her anger, channeling it into her soldiers. They became fiercer and more blood thirsty, pushing the knights back and getting closer to the gates. They would cut them down only for them to spring up again more powerful then before.

The allies of Camelot began to fall. The shadows pierced them with unseen swords. They moved so quickly now, taking down more and more as they made their way across the battlefield.

The mortal humans began to lose strength, becoming weary. They wouldn't be able to keep this up for much longer.

Morgana's spells came slowly and her voice was horse from screaming the incantations. She was surrounded. One of the shadows was directly in front of her, but the next thing she knew it was behind her. She cried out with pain, clutching her right arm where blood flowed freely from the wound. It was as if the shadows were dancing around her, lunging forward, striking blows that were not fatal. They wanted to see her squirm. They wanted her to die a slow and painful death. They wanted to see how long this mortal would last.

But someone else had another idea. Suddenly all of the shadows around her were thrust back, disappearing as they hit the ground. Morgana looked up to see the cloaked figure standing protectively in front of her. His blue eyes looking, watching, and challenging the enemy to try and take another step towards them.

One of the shadows dared and lunged forward but he cut it down before it could even get close. The others backed off a bit, now nervous, but one command from their master and they charged the two.

Morgana closed her eyes, ready for the end. Nothing happened. She opened her eyes slowly, fearing what she might find. The cloaked figure stood looking down at her, hand outstretched. She took it without a second thought and he pulled her to her feet.

"Merlin." She breathed his name. He smiled at her.

If they hadn't been in the middle of a battle she would have embraced him. They looked at each other, taking the other person in. Morgana's eyes broke away first, just in time to see a shadow sneaking up behind him. Her eyes narrowed. The spell slipped from her lips so easily and the shadow disappeared.

Their magic joined the battle once more. They made their way over to the royal couple. Gwen was the first to see them, a grin spread across her face and she barely looked at the shadow in front of her as she destroyed it.

Arthur only noticed when his best friend appeared by his side, grinning. He had to stop himself from laughing at his friend's goofy smile.

"It's about time you got here." Arthur spun around, driving his sword into the chest of one of the shadows.

"Sorry I got held up." Merlin avoided one of the shadow's swings, coming around behind it. His eyes flashed gold and it was gone. "When you are delivering an important treaty to the Druids that will create peace between Camelot and them there is always bound to be someone trying to stop you."

"Did any of the other magical clans show up?" Gwen spun the weapon out of her foe's hand, disarming it then taking it down.

"They were there. After a lot of arguing and threats we did manage to get them to finally sign the darn thing." Merlin dropped to the ground, tripping the shadow creature. It fell flat on it's back so hard that it vanished.

"Where is the treaty now?" Morgana came up behind another shadow, cutting it down from behind.

"Sitting on his Majesty's desk in a box locked by my own magic." He barely avoided another attack.

"That's not very reassuring." Arthur mocked.

Merlin glared at him. "The key to it is now hanging around your neck, clotpole." He struck the shadow on the neck, letting his magic flow through his fingers into the beast. It shook violently then dropped.

Arthur felt the metal key under his chainmail and smiled. He cut through two foes at once with a horizontal swipe from his sword. "It's good to have you back Merlin. This battle has gone on long enough."

"It's time to finish this." Merlin agreed.

Without needing to say a word, Morgana, Arthur, and Gwen took a step back, away from Merlin and so they were standing behind him. Arthur gestured for his knights to do the same.

Merlin took a step towards the new wave of shadows charging them. He stretched his hands out on either side of him, and then brought them together, creating a massive energy wave, which rocketed towards the enemy.

It crashed into them with such force that they were thrown into the air before they disappeared for good. Another terrible cry sounded through the air, forcing them all to cover their ears.

Finally the old crone appeared in front of them, a deadly look on her face. She looked as though she was going to charge them herself but she staggered as she tried to take a step towards them. They could hear her panting hard.

"Camelot will fall." She raged. "It may not be today, or by my hand, but one day it will and it will be your fault Arthur Pendragon."

Arthur walked forward until he was standing ahead of Merlin. Gwen followed him.

"I do not wish harm to magic." Arthur spoke to her. "I was wrong before, I know that. It took too much sacrifice for me to finally see that. There is no need to fight. I want peace."

"That may be so, but the price was too high and it took too long for you to finally see. You must pay for those sacrifices." Her beady eyes found Morgana. "And you witch. How can you stand with him? He has tried to kill you in the past."

Morgana went to stand next to her brother. "As you said, that was in the past. I was so angry at the persecution of my people that I too was blind. I didn't see that there was another way." She glanced back at Merlin for a moment. "Violence isn't the answer. Uther didn't see that but Arthur does. A great Queen once told me that I was more like my father then I realized. I didn't believe her at the time. I do now. We have all made our mistakes. It is time we all changed." She reached her hand out to the old witch.

"Your words cannot bring them back." She sneered. "Nothing you do can change what has happened."

"Then let us change the future." Arthur too outstretched his hand.

"No!" She screamed. "Your words are smooth like a snakes. I can never forgive you for what you did. I will never forgive the Pendragons."

"You can't forgive them because you haven't tried." Gwen spoke up. "You're not letting yourself see the truth."

"I won't listen to this anymore. My magic is almost completely depleted." She razed her hand into the air. The movement caused Morgana and Arthur to drop their hands and put up their defenses. "But I still have one trick up my sleeve, my greatest trick. It will be my last gift to you. I may not be able to destroy Camelot, but I will make you suffer before the end."

Her eyes flashed gold and she collapsed. Nothing seemed to happen. Then they heard a sharp gasp come from behind them. They spun around to see Merlin, shock written on his face. He looked down to where his hand clutched his side. The others followed his example.

Merlin removed his hand to reveal a dark stain spreading through the fabric of his shirt. He looked up at his friends before his legs gave out under him. Arthur managed to catch him before he hit the ground.

Morgana dropped down beside them and laid Merlin's head in her lap. Gwen joined them, taking up Merlin's hand. The knights crowded around them.

"You're going to be ok Merlin. You hear me?" Arthur shook his friend to keep his eyes from closing.

"We'll get you back to Gaius. He'll be able to do something." Gwen began to cry.

Merlin began to cough. A thin line of blood appeared at the edge of his mouth. His eyes started to close.

"Stay awake Merlin. You have to stay awake." Morgana held him.

"I never thought it would hurt so much." Merlin managed to croak out.

"It's just a scratch Merlin. Don't be such a wimp." Arthur tried to joke.

"Not the wound." Merlin corrected. "That hurts too though. I meant this. I meant the part in life where you have to say goodbye."

"Don't talk like that Merlin." Gwen lectured. "This isn't goodbye. Everything will be all right."

"I was lucky though." Merlin smiled weakly. "I got to meet all of you. You mean the world to me. I'm glad that you're here."

"We're glad we met you too." Tears appeared in Arthur's eyes. Merlin's eyes fluttered.

"This can't be happening." Morgana begged. "We all just got back together again. The four of us, just like it used to be."

"It was always the four of us, wasn't it?" Merlin tried to nod, looking at each of his friends in turn. "Right from the start. It was always going to be us."

"It won't be the same without you." Gwen was sobbing now.

"You saved me Merlin." One of Morgana's tears landed on his forehead. "I was so far gone but you still managed to pull me back again. You showed me that I wasn't alone. There really was another way. You gave up your greatest secret just to show me that."

"But I almost gave up on you Morgana."

"You took a chance though. You tried one final time to bring me back. You risked everything just for that one last chance. That means more to me then anything else."

"I took that chance and got banished for it."

"Well that didn't work out very well did it?" Arthur laughed halfheartedly. He took up his friend's hand.

"That is behind us now." Merlin lightly squeezed Arthur's hand. "This is an new age."

"And it's all thanks to you old friend. You're a hero. Don't forget that."

"We'll never forget you." Gwen spoke quickly as she saw his eyes begin to close again. "I wish you didn't have to go."

They all knew that there was no chance of getting him back to Gaius in time. Just moving him could cause more damage. It was so hard for him to stay awake, but he had to. Just for a little bit longer.

"Gwen, don't ever doubt yourself. You are a great Queen." Then he looked to Morgana. "Morgana, Camelot needs you. You will always have a place there." Then he looked to his King, his best friend, Arthur. "Arthur, just don't be a prat."

They laughed and Merlin began to cough again.

"You made my life worth living. I…" Then his body started to shake violently. His friends held him, trying to stop his violent jerks.

"Don't go Merlin." Morgana pleaded softly. "You made our lives worth living."

But her words could do nothing as his eyes slid shut for the last time. Then he went still, too still. His friends looked down at him, tears pouring down their faces. He looked peaceful; there was a hint of a smile on his lips.

Morgana screamed into the air, holding Merlin's limp form close. Arthur beat the ground with his fist. Gwen could only stare, not completely understanding what had just happened.

In the end Merlin had been killed by his own shadow.

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**Thank you JustYourAverageWhovian, ANNIE, AnotherNamelessAuthor, and Josh4eva3 for reviewing.**

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**An equal amount of gratitude to everyone you alerted my story. My mind was blown by your awesomeness so I didn't have enough braincells left to write all of your wonderful names down. I might next time if my brain manages to repair itself. **

**I love you all and hope you keep reading because things are going to get interesting in the next chapter.**


	3. Fate and Destiny

**Thanks guys for all of the inspiration so here is the next chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin or any Greek myth, only my OCs.  
**

**Hope you enjoy.**

Fate and Destiny

The group was silent. Arthur personally felt like punching a wall as many times as it took to make the memory go away, masking pain with pain. Things had been different ever since that day. Nothing was bright anymore. Things still went well with the treaty with Morgana taking over.

In her past she might have liked the thought of having more power, but it was the thought of the person who had done it before her that made her feel that she needed to live up to his image. She could not let Merlin down. He had worked so hard and for so long to make a world where magic could be free. They carried on his work.

The anniversary was coming up, but no one wanted to mention it. Almost a year without him and look what had happened. Camelot was in ruin with no means of escape, no way out. How were they going to pull out of this?

The monsters that now roamed the streets would destroy anyone from the outside that would try to come to their aid. Arthur couldn't bear to pull anyone else into this anyways. He didn't want anyone else to get hurt. He had lost so much and he didn't want anyone else to feel his pain.

Absentmindedly, Arthur took Gwen's hand in his. She was one of the last things he had left. He wanted to keep her close. Though being close to him might put her in more danger then if she were to be sent away, evacuated.

She squeezed his hand lightly. Arthur reminded himself that if she had gone with the others he probably would spend every moment wondering how she was and what she was doing. Without her reassuring presence he might actually go mad.

Two of the original four were gone. Now only two remained. Arthur never dreamed that Merlin would be the first to go. He had thought that it might be Morgana back when they weren't on best terms with each other. Then he thought it might be himself. He hoped in some ways, and then he wouldn't have to bear watching the others go. That didn't really work out did it?

The old crone had used the last of her powers to take control of Merlin's shadow. That was a very difficult magic to master and ended up draining her of the last of her power just to control it for a few seconds. But those seconds had been enough. Merlin's shadow had come to life, running him through.

Why did it have to be Merlin? Why couldn't she had taken his shadow and used it to against him? But her actions did cause the maximum suffering. She had done her job. The old crone was probably laughing beyond the grave at her success. Arthur wished he could kill her all over again.

He sighed. Morgana ended up being the next of them to go and Arthur had to watch then too. He had to watch her body go limp, absent of life. She would never smile again, never laugh. Morgana would never plot to take over Camelot again. Arthur laughed inwardly. He never thought he would miss her evil schemes.

He just wanted her to be here. Out of all of the losses they had suffered because of this invasion hers had hit the hardest. He had spent quite a long time hating her and fighting against her. Now they had been fighting side by side like they used to. There was hope with her by his side but now there was nothing. Camelot would fall and he would fall with it.

Why had Gaius even brought up Merlin? He wasn't here. He couldn't do anything to save them. What was the point of finding all of the "what ifs" in this situation? They wouldn't change anything. There was no point in finding all of the ways these circumstances were irreversible. Ifs don't bring friends back from the dead. It wasn't magic.

Hopes and dreams of the past only made the pain worse because they now knew that they had screwed up. With that information it only concluded that Camelot was doomed. It was beyond the vale and couldn't be pulled back, like Lancelot, another friend gone, and another if to add to the pile.

Arthur was knocked from his thoughts went the castle shook again, more violently this time. All of their hands immediately went to their swords, ready for a fight. Then something burst in through the already broken window. It was a claw.

Gwaine reacted first, lunging at the intruding lim. He lashed at it with his sword, cutting deep into its iron skin. He only managed to pull his sword free before the monster retreated with a howl. The group hurried from the room just as the arm came back, smashing the entire wall.

As they ran down the hallway, Gwaine stole a glance out one of the windows and stopped.

"Sire!" He called to Arthur who came to join him. Together they looked out to see what had caught the knight's eye.

"Who are they?" He asked.

"I have no idea?" Arthur unfortunately admitted.

The castle shook again, forcing them to move. Arthur glanced out the window again to see the two dark figures that had intrigued them. These two were different. Unlike the other monsters they were humanoid. Arthur couldn't get a good look at them from up here.

A loud cry reverberated through the hallway, shattering any glass that might have remained. They all stopped dead in their tracks, covering their ears to spare their eardrums. The shrieking stopped abruptly but it left them disoriented as they stumbled further. They made it as far as the entrance hall where the large doors had been bared to barricade them in and keep what was outside out.

The barricade did nothing though when the doors were suddenly blasted open, wood flying everywhere. The group ducked to avoid as much of it as they could but Gwaine took one to the left shoulder quite hard when he tried to protect Gaius. He heard the crack and pop as it became dislocated.

When everything became still again the two dark figures strode in through the entryway. Stopping just in front of the group.

Arthur recovered first. "Who are you?"

One of the dark figures was tall and slim. The other was rather short and large. Both were cloaked in black, hiding their faces from view.

"What are you doing here?" Arthur tried another question.

The short one lifted a bony finger until it was pointed straight at Arthur's chest. Then she began to laugh. It was horrible. It made him want to go curl up in a corner and hide. But he was the King and he had to stand strong, for his people.

"You are so weak." She cackled. "So vulnerable. I had been expecting a challenge but it seems I am to be disappointed. You are supposed to be the great King Arthur, but here you are in a crumbling castle in a falling city. I am surprised you haven't made a run for it yet."

"Are you the one who caused this?" Arthur felt anger rising inside him.

"However much I wish I was, no. I am not. Whatever is calling my children here is calling me too." Then she removed her hood. She was old, very, very old. So old that Arthur wondered what was still holding her together. Even her wrinkles had wrinkles.

"Who are you?" He asked again.

"I am Echidna." She grinned a toothy grin. The smile was menacing, every one of her teeth was pointed sharp. "The ones who attack your city are my children."

"How?" Gwaine recovered enough to ask.

Without a word the old woman began to change. Her body grew longer and she rose into the air. Her skin stretched and she took on a much younger appearance. The group stared up at her in horror as she morphed from the little old lady to a monster.

The top half of her body was youthful and human. She was even beautiful. Two angels wings protruded from her back. They were black and scruffy looking. They may have appeared as angel wings but they were placed on a demon body. Her hair was long and flowing. The lower half of her, however, was that of a snake with two tails.

Echidna smiled down at them as she licked her lips. She slithered across the floor until she was standing just in front of Arthur. Her breath smelt of rotting meat and Arthur had to use all of his courage not to back away. He tried to stand tall and confident in front of her but she could see right through him. Her grin widened.

"How do you like me now King?" She mocked. "Still glad that you asked?"

"What are you?" Arthur coughed, trying not to gag. "Half human, half beast?"

"More like half nymph and all goddess." She cackled. "I am the mother of all monsters and you should fear me."

"Why?" Arthur stood defiant.

The question seemed to catch her off guard and she faltered, but only for a moment, the smile quickly returning to her face.

"Courage." She breathed and licked her lips with a forked tongue. "I haven't tasted courage like yours in a long time. I can smell it in the air. It is strong."

The other dark figure moved from his place until he was standing next to the goddess. His face was still shrouded in shadows.

"We are not here to eat them. Not yet." His voice was low and danger laced each one of his words.

Echidna looked disappointed as she reluctantly backed away. She hissed at them for good measure.

"Then what are you here for?" Arthur asked.

"This is a more of a getting to know you visit." He purred. "It wouldn't be polite to kill you since we've only just met."

"Knocking would have been polite." Gwaine sneered. "Who are you?"

"You may call me Atticus for now." He let the name roll off his tongue. "I guess I just wanted to see you alive once before I killed you and destroyed your city once and for all. You wouldn't imagine the line of people who want to see the destruction of this place." As he said this he took a look around the crumbling castle, taking everything in.

"You should have waited your turn." Gwaine spat.

"I've heard so much about this place. In the future it was supposed to become great but it seems that that time will never come." He almost sounded disappointed. "I jumped at the chance to be a part of destroying your wonderful futures."

"I'll take it you aren't behind this either." Arthur frowned.

"Unfortunately not." Atticus walked over and ran his finger along one of the walls, inspecting it afterwards. "Whoever is I must say is a genius. No one else has come this close."

"You don't know who it is?"

"Nope."

"And yet you are following their orders."

"Orders? I don't follow anyone's orders. No. We were all drawn to this place."

"My children are enjoying their meal. This is a gift." Echidna laughed.

"What do you mean you were drawn here?" Arthur was confused.

"Don't expect me to explain it." Atticus threw his hands in the air defensively. "Some things just happen."

"Then how do you know one person is behind this?" Arthur pushed for more information.

"So many questions." Atticus shook his head. "Some things are better left a mystery, at least until later. Why give the game away when it's only just begun?"

"We have been fighting for a month. How can this only be the beginning?"

"You will see, Arthur Pendragon. When the time comes you will understand everything."

"I thought the future of Camelot was prophesized. It hasn't even fulfilled its destiny, it can't end now." Gaius broke in.

"Prophesies?" Atticus laughed loudly. "When were they ever accurate? Those old things are only good for bedtime stories."

"What do you mean?" Arthur asked.

"I know the tale you speak of old man. It has already unwound you just don't realize it. After all, the Once and Future King cannot complete this destiny without Emrys. It just isn't done."

Their hearts fell. It was true. Emrys was supposed to be here if destiny were to be followed. The loss of the warlock meant that they had lost before they had even started. It was hopeless. But somehow Arthur couldn't quite believe that.

"Destinies can't be changed." He tried to argue.

"Yes they can, just as time can be rewritten. We forge our own paths. Destiny is just what people want you to do. Its your choice whether or not it will happen." Atticus countered.

"It will happen."

"Look around you. Destiny has already fallen." He waved his arm in a gesture around them for emphasis.

"You underestimate fate."

This statement caught Atticus' attention. "Now fate is a competently different matter all together. Don't ever mix fate with destiny."

"Why?"

"Destiny is changeable but fate is eternal. Destiny is in the future. Fate is here and now. The thing you need to think about is what is your fate?" He explained. "When you figure it out, tell me. Then we will see if you really want to play this game."

Atticus turned and walked back to the destroyed door, speaking as he went, "It was nice to meet you Arthur Pendragon."

Echidna followed him, but she turned back just before exiting through the doorway. "Did you know that Emrys means Immortal?" She asked slyly. "Well a lot of good that did him."

Then she was gone, hissing as she went.

**Thank you for reading and please don't hesitate to REVIEW!**

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**Echidna is from Greek mythology and is known as the Mother of All Monsters.  
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**Everyone who has reviewed, clicked favorite, and followed, I honestly love you people. You are brilliant.  
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**Special thanks to lordstarlight, MerlinFan1996, and readernurse for your awesome reviews.  
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**Honestly there are just so many remarkable people to write down all your names here. I will do it at some point, I promise, but it is late and my brain is startling to slow down.  
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**Hope you guys keep reading because the adventure has only just started.  
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	4. The Spoils of War

**Sorry this took me longer then I thought it would but here it is.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin, or Greek myths, just my OCs.**

**Read and Enjoy!**

The Spoils of War

Gwaine groaned as he felt the pain of his dislocated shoulder. After the visit from the monstrously beautiful Echidna and mysterious hooded Atticus, the group had relocated to the medical room, which had once been the banquet hall. The hall was filled with beds or furniture that was close enough to a bed. Unfortunately most of them were filled with wounded and dying knights.

Gwaine sat on a bench that had been pushed up against one of the walls. He watched Gaius scurrying around the room trying to keep the knights alive. Some servants who hadn't been evacuated were doing the same. Surprisingly most of them had volunteered to stay behind to look after the men who fought to protect them.

A girl with short brown hair sat by one of the knight's bed holding his hand and speaking to him softly. The young knight's breathing was harsh and slowing. He fought hard for each breath, holding on tightly to the maid's hand as if it were life itself. His brow dripped with sweat.

Without letting go of his hand the maid turned to take a cool cloth that floated on top of a bucket of water. Gwaine cringed as he saw the scar that ran from the bottom of her right ocean green eye and down to the end of her soft face. Gently, she laid the cloth across the knight's forehead in the hopes that it would cool his fever.

But the knight began to shake violently in the bed. He cried out with pain and the girl launched forward, wrapping him in her arms in order to keep him still. He needed to stop moving or the bleeding would get worse. The wound was situated just over his right lung where something had pierced his shoulder. The blood soaked into the girl's cloths but she didn't care, she just held him.

She whispered something comforting in his ear and soon he stopped his violent jerks, his breathing returning to a more natural pace as he drifted off into sleep. She pulled away, replacing the cloth on his forehead before walking away to see to another patient. Gwaine saw her look back several times to make sure he was still breathing.

"Gwaine, are you ok?" He heard someone ask from beside him, jerking his eyes away from the scene.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He said to Percival who looked at him with concern.

"I don't think your shoulder agrees." Percival eyed Gwaine's dislocated left shoulder.

"I can barely feel it." He tried to push away his friend's concern.

"Do you want me to pop it back in for you?"

Gwaine eyed him warily. Percival was the strong man of the knights. He could pop his shoulder back in no problem but he might shove it in a little too far.

"I can control my strength, no matter what you might think." Percival could somehow tell what scenarios were running through his head where he would end up having one arm that was a lot shorter then the other.

"Alright, give it a go." Gwaine grabbed a broken piece of someone's spear and bit down on it with his teeth.

"Ready?" Percival took his arm. Gwaine groaned in response.

"1…2…3!" The shoulder went in easily but not delicately. Gwaine bit into the wood hard to mask the pain then he spat it out.

"Never heard of the term gently?" He caressed his shoulder.

"Nope." Percival tried to laugh but settled for a smile instead. Laughing was unheard of these days.

Gwaine got to his feet, still holding his shoulder. Without a word the two knights went to see if their services were needed. They made their way through the hall, weaving in and out of the beds until they reached the old physician who was looking at the left arm of one of the knights. He had removed the bandages to inspect it.

"I'm afraid there is nothing I can do for this infection. It will spread until your whole arm is dead." Gaius frowned. "To stop it from going any further into your body and create anymore damage we are going to have to cut it off." He didn't even try to put it delicately.

The knight he was speaking to looked alarmed. "But I'm left handed. How am I supposed to fight?"

"You'll have to learn to wield your sword with your right hand now. It shouldn't be too hard." Percival cut in.

Gaius looked up. "Ah, just the man I wanted to see. I will give this lad something for the pain. Would it be too much to ask for you to take this one?"

"Not at all Gaius." He bowed his head slightly and went to work as the young knight downed a bottle of liquid that Gaius had given him.

"Gwaine, please follow me." He walked further into the room, not even looking back to see if the knight was following.

Before they could get to the bed that Gaius was aiming for, a yell came from the other side of the room. Someone was calling for Gaius urgently.

The two of them looked over to see that it was the Queen herself. She stood by one of the older knight's bed, trying to keep him awake. Gaius moved quickly. Gwaine was surprised at the speed at which the old man covered the room before he was by Gwen's side.

The knight's wound had reopened and the blood showed no signs of stopping. He cried out loudly at the pain. Gwen had her hands pressed against the open wound but it didn't seem to help.

"We need to stop him from moving." Gaius commanded, but no force was needed to pin him down. He was already still, still as death. His eyes stared blankly up at the ceiling.

Gwaine cursed but did not have the energy to lash out at an unsuspecting piece of furniture. Gwen reached out and gently closed his eyes. He almost looked peaceful now, but the dark circles around his eyes made that hard to see.

Gwen pulled the thin blanket up further over the knight until they could no longer see his face. Now he was just a body lying on a table, nameless to all those who passed by. He was just another one of the fallen now. Just another name to add to the list of lost knights, soldiers, and friends. So many had been taken by this bloody war. You'd think it wouldn't hurt anymore. The pain in Gwaine's shoulder moved to his heart. It still hurt, every single moment of every single day.

They had families didn't they? If they ever got through this, how many were going to be able to get back to their families? How would they tell the ones who would never see their loved ones again?

This war was cruel and left none unaffected. The war was too kind to forget anyone. Even if they did somehow find a way to end its miserable existence it would never really go away. It would leave its signature in all of their minds. It would never let them forget, plaguing their nightmares.

War was pointless. It only really gives what it fully intends to take away in the end. It calls for blood and sacrifice. War tears people apart. It shatters them, the pieces never being put back together because they don't fit anymore. War changes people. It had changed them all.

They stared down at the blanket that covered the knight for a moment before the noise that echoed through the hall finally came back to them. Gaius moved off silently to go tend to his other patients. Gwen soon left too, unable to look anymore. Gwaine stayed, just for a little bit longer, trying to remember what the man under the sheet looked like before. He tried to remember how he smiled and the sound of his laughter.

A memory floated to the surface of Gwaine's memories. It was a good memory, from the good old times. They seemed so far away now.

He remembered a night he had once spent in the tavern. Many of the knights had gone to celebrate victory and success to peaceful negotiations. He could still hear the clatter as their mugs of ale clanged together in cheers. The men laughed heartily ad sang songs from their younger days. Some of them tried to dance but that didn't really end well.

Gwaine remembered the night because there was one old knight who came to sit beside him, handing him another ale. The man got to reminisce of when he first became a knight. He retold the stories of his first battle and victory. He tried to give Gwaine advise about how to fight and how to hold your ale, but the words slurred together so Gwaine missed most of it. Though he didn't really care. He just laughed along with the man and they both joined in on the song that the others were singing.

Gwaine had never heard the song before but he just followed as best he could and just made up the words he couldn't understand. No one noticed and no one cared. The old knight beside him roared with laughter, which was quickly replaced by lowed snores. Some of the other knights had to carry him out when the barmaid finally threw them out. They sang all the way home. They sang for a better tomorrow.

Gwaine sighed. Those were certainly the good old days. He hadn't gone out drinking with the others in almost a year. Sober never used to be in is vocabulary.

A giant crash drew the eye of everyone conscious in the room to the big double doors that led out into the hallway. Gwaine went to reach for his sword but was stopped short as pain burst through his shoulder. He clutched his left arm to his chest and forced past the pain, wrapping his hand around the hilt of his sword. The blade slid out of its sheath easily and flashed in the light of the torches that hung from the walls.

Another crash came and the sound of a loud roar echoed through the room, shaking them all to the chore. Whatever it was its footsteps were loud and getting louder as it made its way towards what was now known as the medical room.

All those who were awake and could hold a sword picked up their weapons, guarding themselves. Most of them wouldn't even last a second no matter what came through that door but the idea that they could fight, even just for a short while, made them strong. Gwaine was proud to fight by their sides.

Arthur came up beside him, sword in hand, ready to be launched back into the madness of battle. He could only imagine what horror was waiting on the other side of that door. Then the sound stopped, everything went quiet. The silence that filled the room unnerved them all even more then the sound of the creatures roar.

Was it waiting or was it just toying with them? Gwaine could hear it breathing as if it were sniffing something.

In that moment time seemed to stop. Gwaine looked around the room for what could be the last time. He saw Percival and Gwen standing not too far away. He wished they were closer. Leon wasn't there and nor was Elyan. They were both probably still in the counsel room, unaware of the danger lurking inside the castle walls. How had it even got in?

His eyes swiveled until they landed on the familiar face of the maid with the ocean green eyes. She held a small dagger in her hand and there was determination burning in her eyes. The girl stood protectively in front of one of the patients' beds. It was the young knight she had been caring for before. He lay still, locked in a deep sleep, trying to recover.

She shouldn't be here. None of the servants should. They weren't fighters. They wouldn't stand a chance, but they knew that didn't they. It suddenly dawned on Gwaine. They all knew what might happen if they stayed but they still made the decision. Each one of them was braver then Gwaine had realized. They might even be braver then the knights they were trying to save.

The young maid showed no signs of fear as her grip tightened on the hilt of the dagger in her hands. She knew very well that she might not make it out of this alive. If this were to be her last moments then she would spend them protecting the boy that lay wounded in the bed. She would give her life to save another.

Lancelot had once wondered if there was something he would willingly give up his life for. He got his answer; after all he wasn't here was he. Gwaine now found himself wondering the same question. Before the invasion he had never really thought about it but now the chance to find out was here.

But Gwaine already knew the answer. The answer was yes. He would willingly give up his life for these people, these brave people. They weren't supposed to be here in the first place but they were. It was his duty as a knight of Camelot to protect them even with his life. But even if he weren't a knight he would still be here.

But unlike now he would be less protected. None of them wore armor. If he weren't a knight he would be like them. Brave civilians, willing to volunteer even if it meant they would never see their families again.

Gwaine cursed under his breath. For the life of him he could not recall a single one of their names. He knew all of the knights but now he was confronted with the fact that he had never taken the time to get to know these brave people. Would they be honoured when they were gone, like heroes?

These people volunteered. He couldn't get it out of his head what they had done. They gave everything to stay behind and help in what ever way they could. What did they get in return? They got fear and the knowledge that every moment might be their last, their spoils of war.

Gwaine broke his gaze away from the young maid who stood strong for perhaps the last time. As if in slow motion he looked back to the door just as it exploded.

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**Hope you guys keep following because the fight for Camelot isn't over yet.**


	5. The Game Has Only Just Begun

**Sorry I have been really busy lately so I haven't had a lot of time for writing.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin, or any Greek myth, just my OCs.**

**Hope you enjoy.**

The game has only just begun

The wood of the shattered door flew through the air. Everyone ducked for cover to avoid the sharp spears. Some however weren't so lucky. Gwen screamed as one of them pierced one of her loyal servants right in front of her eyes.

"Eugene!" She yelled but it was too late, he was gone. She wanted to run to help him even though she knew it was useless, but Percival held her in place before she could run out into the path of the flying debris. Gwen struggled but Percival was strong and she had no chance of breaking free.

Gwen looked away to see a young maid with short brown hair throwing herself over the body of a young knight in order to protect him. Many others did the same. This was the worst place the monsters could have attacked. All of the wounded were here. The knights would do all they could to protect the wounded but that would put them in harms way.

Then the wood stopped flying and everything went silent. They looked up to see who was at the door. Their hearts stopped at the sight of the terrifying beast. It rose above them and roared furiously. It had the body of a lion, a goat's head rose from its back, and its tail was a snake.

"Create a line. Push it back out of the room!" Arthur finally shouted his command when he overcame his shock.

Without hesitation, the knights in the room created a straight, unbreakable line and charged the beast. They tried to pierce the beast's thick skin. It howled and swatted at them, making contact with a few and sending them flying across the room, where they lay still, crumpled on the floor. But the knights kept pushing the monster back and out of the room. Soon it was in the hallway outside the hall where they could fight more freely.

The knights thought they had the beast but then its tail came to life, lashing at the men. It clamped its teeth into the shoulder of one, lifting him off the ground and hurling him into a nearby wall. Then it began to burn as fire shot from the beast's mouth. They tried to avoid the blasts but many were burned. They yelled out with pain and retreated from the flames.

Its huge feet came down on the stone floor, shaking the ground. The men stumbled but attacked with everything they had left. They were all so tired and could barely muster enough strength to avoid the monster's attacks.

"What is this thing?" Arthur yelled, hoping someone would answer.

"It's a Chimera your Grace." He heard someone call back but he didn't have the time to look around and see whom it had been.

Then something caught Arthur's eyes. A dark, hooded, figure was standing not too far away from him. He could just catch glimpses of the figure through the fighting. The hooded man seemed to be waiting.

It was Atticus. Forgetting the Chimera, Arthur pushed his way through the crowd of his men fighting to reach the mysterious man. There was something about him that made his insides clench. Was it fear or was there something else? Recognition maybe?

When he got to where Atticus had been standing only moments before, the man was gone. Arthur searched through the crowd frantically, trying to catch a glimpse of his black hood amongst the heads of his men. But he wasn't there. He was just gone.

Arthur was about the rejoin the fight when something hit him from behind, knocking him to his knees. A spot in the middle of his back stung where he had been struck. A pair of feet came into his vision and he looked up to see the one he had been looking for. It seemed Atticus had found him first.

Atticus crouched down in front of the king and grabbed and handful of his blonde hair, pulling it back to keep him still. He pulled and Arthur winced. He glared at the hooded man in anger. Only half of Atticus' face was visible. His eyes and nose were hidden in shadow cast by his hood.

"You confuse me Arthur Pendragon." Atticus looked down at him. "You are mortal and yet you still believe somehow you can win. You are only a man. Why do you keep fighting?"

"Because there's still something worth fighting for." Arthur spat at the man.

"There won't be for long." He grinned. Arthur shivered at the sight. The smile was inhuman. He could see the man's teeth and the grin was wider then Arthur could ever imagine possible. It struck fear into him.

"What are you going to do Atticus?" Arthur tried to meet his eyes. "Kill me?"

The grin widened even more. "No." This surprised Arthur. "What would be the fun in that? Killing you now would be a mercy. I want you to watch as your precious city falls around you. Then, when you're all alone, I'll take your life. You see? I'm only getting started." His grip tightened on Arthur's hair and he cringed.

"Why are you doing this?"

"I'm not about to share my life story with you Pendragon. Though I do assure you that my reasons are valid. I thought I'd never get the chance the seek my revenge." He laughed, sending fear up Arthur's spine.

"What changed?" He asked.

"I guess someone heard my wish and gave me this chance. All of us drawn here do have something in common." He leaned in closer. "We all hate you."

"Why?"

"You know why?" Atticus didn't have to say anymore. Along with sorcerers, the Pendragons had hunted down monsters for centuries because they believed them to be dangerous. They believed that those creatures were never meant to walk this earth. The beasts were abominations to them and deserved to be killed.

So which was Atticus seeking revenge for? Was he a sorcerer or a monster? Or maybe he was both. The more Arthur looked at him the more he could see the monster inside him.

"I wish I could stay but there are other matters that need my attention." His grip loosened slightly. "But before I go I thought I'd give you a gift." He revealed a dagger he had hidden on the inside of his cloak. Arthur tried to get away but something seemed to be holding him in place. He couldn't move.

Atticus razed the blade to Arthur's eye, but before he could draw a single drop of blood a growl sounded very close to them. It wasn't coming from the Chimera, who was locked in battle with Arthur's men. The sound drew Atticus' attention. He looked confused. Then a wolf burst out of the darkness, growling. It launched itself at Atticus, tackling him away from Arthur, who fell back in shock.

The wolf pinned Atticus to the ground, its jaws locked around the arm that held the knife. It bit down and Atticus yelled in anger and pain. He tried to kick the wolf away but its iron grip on his arm showed no signs of loosening. Then he pulled another dagger from inside his cloak and slashed at the animal, but it was too quick. The wolf let go of Atticus for a moment to avoid the knife but before he could escape it latched on again. With its mighty jaws it flung him as hard as he could across the room. He smacked into a wall, hitting his head and was out.

Then the wolf walked over to Arthur who was still sprawled on the ground. It looked at him curiously, waiting for him to stand. He did, slowly, wary of the wolf that was standing in front of him. Then Atticus began to stir. The wolf growled and took up a protective stance in front of Arthur. He picked up his sword from the ground, ready for a fight.

Atticus' eyes shot open and fell on the wolf. He got to his feet. "It doesn't end here Pendragon." He hissed. "The game has only just begun." Then he disappeared into the darkness.

Now that he was gone Arthur's attention was drawn back to the Chimera that looked like it was starting to get an upper hand in this battle. He looked back to the wolf that had come up beside him. Only now was he able to get a good look at the creature. Its fur was gray and white, with a few black patches. It looked up at Arthur and he saw that it's eyes were a constant stream of the gold. Just like a sorcerer's eyes when they cast their magic.

The wolf looked away, razing its head to the ceiling. It howled loudly, the sound piercing every corner of the room. Windows, that were still intact, shattered. The Chimera stumbled at the noise but it didn't seem to affect the knights who were taking advantage of the beast's confusion. Arthur ran to join his men, followed closely by the wolf.

They struck the Chimera hard, pushing it back against the far wall. It roared, still in a daze from the howl of the wolf. It looked like it was trying to refocus on the knights that were attacking it. It breathed fire in random directions, not even coming close to hitting any of the knights.

The wolf ran ahead of Arthur, leaping into the air and using the back of one of the knights to give it more air. It latched onto the body of the snake, which hissed in pain. The snake tried to shake it off but the wolf held on, not willing to let go. Then, without a warning, it let go, falling to the ground. Arthur looked in horror, expecting it to splatter against the stone, but it landed on its feet and bounded away from the monster, back to Arthur. Blood dripped from the wolf's mouth and it was panting hard.

Then something caught both of their eyes. Someone in an olive green cloak was climbing up one of the walls. The wall had been damaged in the battle with the Chimera and many stones were out of place so the person found it easy to scale the wall. The person was headed for one of the broken widows where he perched himself and draw something from underneath the green cloak. It looked liked a ball of metal. The person balanced on the edge of the windowsill and threw the metal ball at the Chimera whose mouth was open wide as it unleashed its flames.

The metal ball went right down the monster's throat against its will. The flames immediately died and the Chimera froze. The knights stopped too, wondering what had just happened.

The Chimera roared one final time then its eyes rolled back into its head and it fell to the floor, dead. Everyone looked on in amazement. One minute it had been standing there fierce and ready to kill, and now it was dead. Just like that.

The men sighed in relief, a few collapsing to the floor from exhaustion. Gwen, Percival, and Gwaine ran over to Arthur. They stopped short when they saw the wolf, looking at it warily.

"Its ok." Arthur waved them over. They came slowly, not looking away from the wolf.

Arthur looked back to the windowsill where the person in the green cloak had been. He watched as the man easily climbed back down the wall and walked over to them. When the man came closer, Arthur saw that there was something covering his face. It was a half mask in the shape of the top half of a skull. The mask cast a shadow over his eyes so Arthur could not see what colour they were. He was tall and thin like Atticus.

The man came over to stand next to the wolf, which looked up at him. The group suddenly stepped back as the wolf began to change. Its back arched and its front paws lifted off the ground. The fur reseeded back into his skin and he took on a more human appearance. His joints cracked as the bones changed shape.

In the place of the wolf there now stood a boy. He wore a brown cloak like the man's green one who stood next to him. The boy's mask though was not a skull. His half mask was shaped more to his face and looked human. There was no design on it but there were smudges of dirt.

The boy exhaled and looked at Arthur. He could almost see the boy's turquoise eyes on the other side of the mask.

"Come with us." The boy said.

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	6. Keepers of the Dead

**I wrote this chapter a little faster because of your awesome reviews so I decided to update sooner then later.**

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Keepers of the dead

The two strange people, who had suddenly appeared, saving them from the Chimera, were leading them down the hallways of the castle. They would turn abruptly, not looking back to see if the group was still following them. They were silent for the most part. Unsure of where they were being led or if they should really be following them at all, but they had saved their lives so maybe they were trying to help.

Gwen came up beside her husband and took his arm. She looked concerned when she saw his brow was furrowed and he seemed to be thinking hard. Something was bothering him.

"What's troubling you?" She asked quietly.

He didn't answer for a moment but slowly looked over at his wife, seeing her concern. "Its just that there's something that's been bothering me."

"What?" She pushed, knowing that it would be better for him to tell someone and not just deal with it himself, which he usually tried to do. Arthur was strong but sometimes he needed someone to lean on. He used to have Merlin. Ever since his death he had begun to retreat further and further inside himself. Morgana used to be able to get him to open sometimes but now she was gone too.

"Its Atticus." Arthur explained. "There's just something about him that bothers me. Its as if we've met before. There's a memory somewhere at the back of my mind. I can feel it. I know I've seen him before. I just wish I could see his face. Then I would know."

Gwen understood. The strange appearance of the hooded man calling himself Atticus had unsettled her as well. It was true that there was something familiar about him.

"I feel the same way." Gwen voiced her thoughts. "I keep trying to reach for a face inside my mind but it just slips away. Maybe he just reminds me of someone."

"No, he isn't reminding me of someone. He is that someone." Arthur was sure. "Maybe he's just gotten inside our minds. Maybe he's messing with us."

"It doesn't feel like that." She looked at the backs of the two-cloaked figures hurrying down the hallway in front of them. "Where do you think they're taking us?"

"I don't know." He placed his hand over Gwen's.

They all turned another corner and then stopped abruptly. They had come to a wall baring their path. Had they taken a wrong turn or was this the right place? They were very close to the stairs that went down to where the dragon used to be imprisoned.

The tall man in the green cloak lifted his hand and placed it flat against the wall. He lowered his head. The group gasped as they saw red liquid spread out from his hand and grow like vines across the wall. Was it blood? It kept spreading; his hand became thin and frail like and old man's. Then the blood retreated back into his hand and it regained its youth.

But the wall didn't open to reveal any hidden passage. Instead the man stepped forward, right through the wall. The boy followed right after, waving them to follow. He disappeared after the man, leaving the group wondering what to do.

It was Percival who stepped forward first. Slowly he reached out to touch the wall but his fingers didn't find a hard surface. Instead his hand went right through. He looked back at the others then back at the wall that had taken his hand. Gradually he went further into the wall, more and more of his body seemed to disappear into it until there was nothing left of him on this side of the wall.

Gwaine quickly walked forward and went through the wall without hesitation as he followed his friend. Gwen let go of Arthur's arm and stepped in front of the wall. A small hand appeared out of the wall and grabbed her arm, pulling her through. She yelped but the sound disappeared as she vanished into the stone.

Arthur was left alone. Slowly he stepped up to the wall. He tapped it with his index finger, the stone rippled under his touch. Then the little hand appeared again and yanked him through. He gasped as he came out on the other side to find them all in a tunnel cut out of the earth. There was a torch hanging from the wall so they could see. Arthur could also see that the tall man was tapping his foot impatiently.

"You guys take so long." The boy complained. "Its just a door."

Apparently the wall that people could walk through was not anything new to either of them. The tall man weaved through the group and back to the wall they had come through. He tapped the wall next to it three times and the stone wall solidified once more. There would be no going back that way unless one of them opened it again.

The man in the green cloak then retrieved a staff that was leaning against the wall of the tunnel. He tapped it against the floor and the crystal on top of it glowed brightly, lighting their way. The tunnel seemed to stretch far into the earth. Then they came to a staircase carved into the earth and descended. They followed the stairs deeper and deeper underground.

After what seemed like hours they came to flat ground. They were in a circular room with many tunnels leading off in different directions. The boy walked into the middle of the room and spun around, looking at each one of the tunnels. He closed his eyes and seemed to be listening for something.

"What's he doing?" Gwaine asked the man in the skull mask but he didn't answer, though a small smirk appeared on his lips as if he knew something that they didn't.

Then the boy opened his eyes and pointed to one of the tunnels on the right. "Its that one. Come on." He waved them to follow him into the darkness of the tunnel. The group hesitated.

"Maybe you should tell us where we are first." Arthur stated.

"We'll never get there if you keep asking questions." The boy huffed. "Anyways, I'm not really good at explaining it. You'll have to see it to understand."

"But…"

"There's no time. Come on." Then the boy disappeared into the darkness of the tunnel, not waiting for the man holding the light.

They led the group down the tunnel until they came to another fork in the road. The boy stopped. Not waiting the man stepped in front of the boy and chose the path on the left. They followed this tunnel for a while.

Arthur noticed that the walls weren't just dirt with roots running along them. There were symbols carved into them. The marks looked old, like they had been there for a long time. Maybe they were some ancient language that was here before the city had even been built.

There were depictions of animals and beasts, some of which did not exist today. Some of the carvings looked like battles that took place long ago when people first came to this land.

Arthur was so drawn in by these images that he didn't know that the group had stopped again. Instead he kept walking. The man in the green cloak had to grab onto his arm and pull him back before he walked straight off the edge of the path and fell into the gigantic pit that filled the middle of the opening. The pit was huge and paths scaled the edges going up and down into the blackness. They seemed to go on forever.

The group kept close to the wall, keeping away from the edge for the fear that they might fall to their deaths. The boy, however, ran and skipped in front of them, not fearing if he came too close to the edge. Gwen gasped when it seemed that he was going to fall when he peered down into the depths. Along the paths there were many tunnels that led off back into the earth.

They noticed a gigantic crystal, like the one on the man's staff, hovered in the middle of the pit, glowing. It lit the walkways dimly and shadows of other people walking the paths could be seen across the pit. What was this place? Was it some kind of city?

Arthur came up beside the man. "So what was that metal ball that you threw into the Chimera's mouth?"

The man remained silent but the boy came skipping back to them. "It was a special kind of metal that melts in the Chimera's fire. It melted inside of it and that's what killed it."

"Oh." They kept walking until they heard someone running up behind them.

A shadowy figure appeared in the entrance to one of the tunnels. "Did you two have a nice trip?" She wore a plane black birds mask with a long pointed beak sticking out, hiding the top half of her face. A dark blue cloak made her almost disappear into the darkness of the tunnel. Even the two that were leading them looked startled.

"Kevia!" The boy looked surprised. "What a nice surprise."

"I'm sure." She stepped further into the light. "Your lucky I haven't already notified the Mother Keeper of your little adventure above ground."

"Are you going to?" He waited for their fates to be decided.

"No." They group sighed with relief. "But this is the last time I cover for you. People were already starting to ask questions."

"What did you tell them?"

"That I asked you to go to Depth to get me some nails from Garth."

"But I thought you got those nails yourself yesterday."

"Well they didn't know that now did they."

The boy ran forward and hugged Kevia around the waste. "Thank you. Thank you."

"Ok that's enough." She said, pushing him away. "So you brought someone back this time." Her eyes finally fell on the others.

"I'm Arthur, this is Gwen, Percival, and Gwaine." Arthur gestured to himself and his friends.

"I know who you are." She waved away their surprised looks. "There aren't many people down here who don't know who you are."

"Where is down here exactly?" Arthur asked. "Is it some kind of underground city?"

"Sort of." Kevia answered. "We do all live down here. But that's not what its here for."

"Then what's it here for?" Gwaine asked.

"Its here to protect the dead." She explained. "This is a tomb."

Their mouths dropped. This whole place was one big tomb created to hold the dead. The place suddenly became a little more menacing and a cold feeling ran over them. How many dead were buried down here? Their surroundings took on a more haunted appearance.

"I'm sorry. We're being rude. Knowing these two, you don't even know their names." She apologized. "My names Kevia. The tall silent one is Edmond." She grabbed the boy by the shoulders. "And the little annoying one is August."

"Hey!"

"Its very nice to meet you." Percival said politely.

"So if this is a tomb then what are all of you doing down here?" Arthur noticed that something was sort of off about them.

Kevia and the others looked at each other for a moment as if they were having some kind of silent discussion. It seemed as though they were trying to decide how much to tell these outsiders. After a long moment Kevia looked back.

"Like this tomb, we are here to protect them." She told them. "We are the keepers of the dead."

"Why do the dead need keepers?" Arthur pushed for more information.

"We'll explain more later." Something behind them caught her eye. "Quickly through here."

They were ushered into the tunnel Kevia had come out of. They blended into the darkness just as another group of keepers walked by, talking. They paid no attention to them.

"No one can know that you're here." August explained.

"Why?"

"Well strictly speaking no outsiders are allowed down here, ever."

"Then why are we here?"

"Camelot is being attacked." August started walking down the tunnel with the others following close behind. "Come on its not good to stay in one place for too long. Anyways, the city protects us down here. If it is destroyed then we are left vulnerable. There had to be something we could do to help."

"And what is that?"

"You have too many questions." Kevia noted. "We'll take you to the Mother Keeper, she might know what we can do. That is if she decides to help at all."

"Hurry up." August called back. "There are some things we need to pick up on the way and there might be some people you want to see."

They walked in silence, with Edmonds staff being the only thing to light their way. Arthur came up to walk next to Kevia. There were so many questions he wanted to ask. These people were strange to him. Each one of them seemed to be keeping a secret hidden behind those masks.

"Why does no one outside know about this place?" He asked.

"Before the Great Purge this was a place of remembrance. People used to come here from all over to pay their respects." She answered. "But then the Mother Keeper ordered the way shut for fear of Uther's wrath. His hatred towards magic could have turned on us and he may have ordered this place destroyed. We have protected the dead for hundreds of years. We couldn't let that happen."

"We were starting to bring magic back. Did you not know?"

"We knew. We may be cut off down here from the outside but we still have our ways of knowing." She ran her finger along the dirt wall.

"Then why did you never reopen the entrance?"

"To protect everyone on the outside."

"What do you mean?" Arthur was confused.

"The tunnels have become restless lately. Something has agitated them. Its not safe down here right now." She explained.

Arthur was confused. "Why are you talking about this place as if it is alive?"

Kevia looked over at him and smiled. "Because it is."

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**This wasn't my best chapter but I promise things will get better (I hope).  
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**So far I'm just dropping hints about Merlin. I hope you pick them up.  
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	7. Secrets and Lies

**Here we are with the next chapter. The one after this might take me a little bit longer to write.**

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**Hope you enjoy.**

Secrets and Lies

They made their way down a series of tunnels. August skipped ahead of them as if he didn't need the light that Edmond carried to see in the dark. Perhaps it had something to do with the wolf that slept inside him. Arthur had wondered about the wolf half of the boy. Was it a spell that brought on the change in him or was it a part of him? Maybe the wolf and the boy were one and the same.

But August looked happy, no signs of a war he was fighting to keep control of his own body. Perhaps that was the secret that he hid behind his mask. A monster lay sleeping inside him and he didn't know when the moment would come when he no longer controlled the beast.

Each one of these people had a secret. Edmond was quiet. He hadn't spoken a word to them ever since he had appeared scaling the wall of the castle as if it were the easiest thing in the world. What wasn't he saying?

Then there was Kevia. It didn't seem like she was hiding anything but one couldn't be too sure down here. Lies were written on the walls of the tunnel and nothing down here was as it seemed. She would get a far off look in her eyes as she gazed at the walls of the tunnel, running her finger along them. She said that the tunnels were alive. What did she mean by that?

They said they were the Keepers of the dead but was that the only reason they were down here? Or was there something else, a darker purpose that had brought them down to the darkness that filled these tunnels? A perfect place to hide.

Arthur didn't trust them but still he followed them through the dark, knowing that he wouldn't be able to get out on his own. There was no going back now.

As they went further and further into the earth the scenery began to changed. Steps lead away from the tunnel and up to pedestals where what looked like coffins laid. The lids to them were clear and he managed to get glimpses of the people resting inside. They didn't look like they were dead, only sleeping. As if any moment they might open their eyes again and breathe the earth's sweet breath. But they remained as still as the day they died.

A shiver ran up his spine as he caught a glimpse of an old man sleeping inside one of the glass coffins. He was old and wrinkled as if any moment he would turn to dust. Something was special about these coffins. They were preserving the bodies perfectly. The tunnels didn't smell like rot like the crypts he used to visit that held his family. These bodies weren't decaying like the others.

Who were these people and why did they find their final resting place down here, of all places? August had said that there were people down here that they might want to see. Who could he know down here? Or perhaps he was speaking of the dead. People from his past were buried down here, but who?

They turned a corner and the tunnel started to widen. More and more coffins appeared in alcoves dug out of the wall. Arthur's breath quickened as the fear he had had as a child came to the surface. He was sure he wasn't the only one who had been afraid of the dead. When he was a child he used to refuse to go down into the crypt with his father to visit his ancestors. He always thought they would crawl out of their coffins and come for him. Eventually the fear disappeared, especially after he was locked down there by some of the Lords' sons who thought he was a chicken and not a real prince.

He was down there all night until one of the servants came and found him. Arthur wasn't afraid of the dead after that, though he did have nightmares for weeks. The boys who had locked him down there eventually became his knights. They were willing to die for their king, nothing like the immature boys they used to be.

As Arthur thought about that moment all those years ago and of the boys he realized something. Some of them now lay among the fallen. It struck his heart hard. He held no hatred for them now. He only wish that they knew that he had forgiven them and that their king wished that they were still there.

People can change so much from when they were children. You can start out as enemies but still become friends before the end. Arthur hadn't liked Merlin when they first met. He only thought of him as a peasant with guts. Now he wished every day that he were still here, standing next to him.

Everyone can change. Morgana had. Before the end she had truly become the sister he had always secretly wanted. She stood by his side and supported him, never letting him down. Even in her last moments she had proven herself loyal. She sacrificed herself so that he could live. Now Arthur wondered, was it worth it?

Many had fallen in the battle to save Camelot. He hoped that he would be able to save the rest if this Mother Keeper agreed to help them. Arthur wasn't sure exactly how she was going to do that yet. The three Keepers led them on through the tunnels.

"Hey there." Someone said as she appeared out of the darkness right next to Edmond. Startled, he stumbled and smacked into the dirt wall. The girl who had jumped out at him started laughing. "Got you again Eddy."

Edmond glared at her. The mask that she wore looked like it was made out of fire. It wrapped around her face as if it had been specially molded for her. The fake flames did not burn her but made her greenish blue eyes pop. The fire licked down the sides of her face but kept her mouth visible. But the cloak that she wore was dark gray. She looked to be around the same age as Arthur.

She stopped laughing though when she saw the guests her friends had brought with them. Her smile faded and she looked slightly alarmed.

"Did I miss something?" She asked, not taking her eyes off Arthur and the others.

"Everyone, this is Jade." Kevia introduced her. "Jade these are…"

"I know who they are." Jade cut her off. "What I want to know is what their doing down here. If anyone finds out we'll be tossed into the pit." She might have been exaggerating.

"What do you mean we?" Kevia asked, folding her arms.

"Well you don't think I'm going to let you all go off and have an adventure without me. I want in." She also folded her arms, daring anyone to challenge her.

Kevia laughed. "I thought you might."

"So what exactly is going on up there?" Jade looked to Arthur.

"The city is overrun by monsters. We've fallen back to the citadel but we may not be able to hold them off for much longer." Arthur summed it all up.

"Do you have any idea who is behind it all?" Kevia asked.

"No." He sighed. "But there are two that seem to be leading the charge but I'm sure that there is someone else behind them."

"Who are these two?" Jade asked warily.

"There's Echidna, she calls herself the mother of monsters. Then there's Atticus…"

At the mention of the name, Edmond pulled a stone knife from his belt. Anger spread across his face under the skull mask that he wore. Jade quickly made her way over to him, placing a hand on his chest, stopping him from doing something stupid.

"Edmond." She spoke smoothly. "Remember what we talked about. Just breathe." She breathed in deeply and Edmond followed her lead. They did this a couple times and Jade slowly removed the stone knife from his hand. "Feel better?" He nodded. "Go cool off."

Edmond handed the staff to Jade and went to look at one of the coffins. The coffin held a beautiful girl with dark flowing hair. She wore a lovely dress that looked like one of the ones Morgana used to wear, and in her hands she held a small red flower, the colour of strawberries. Edmond caressed the glass cover as he stared down at her, trying to calm his nerves.

"Sorry about Ed." Jade came back, holding the staff. "He just hasn't been the same since…" She trailed off.

"Does he know the man that I mentioned?" Arthur was careful not to mention Atticus' name incase Edmond could still hear them.

"I'm afraid so." Kevia answered. August left them to go and stand by Edmond. He seemed to really look up to the man, always following right behind him.

"He wasn't always like this you now." She continued.

"You mean quiet?" Gwaine asked. He knew the feeling. He wasn't the same man he used to be either.

"Yeah." Kevia lowered her eyes to the floor.

"I didn't know him then but they say he used to smile and even laugh." Jade placed a hand on her friend's shoulder. "He used to tell the most amazing stories."

"What happened?" Gwen asked.

"Atticus." Jade whispered, hatred lasing the name. "He has always been evil and always will be evil. He's a monster."

"What did he do to Edmond?" Percival spoke up.

"Edmond went to fight him." Kevia took over, looking up. "He thought he could take him all by himself but by the time we found him it was too late." She fell silent.

"Why were you too late?" Arthur really wanted to know what happened.

Kevia looked back at Edmond before going on, to make sure he wouldn't hear what she was about to say. "When we finally found him Atticus had done his work. He had cut out Edmond's tongue."

Gwen gasped. "That's why he doesn't talk, because he can't."

"We're lucky he wasn't killed." Jade wiped a tear from her eye. "But he hasn't been the same since then. He used to be a powerful sorcerer but without his tongue he can't use his full power."

"You mean he can still do magic without speaking the words?" Arthur was impressed and sorry for the man.

"Some, yes." The two woman went silent as Edmond came back to join them. "You ok?" Edmond only nodded, he didn't really look ok but at least he had mostly calmed down.

"We should keep moving. I take it we're going to see the Mother Keeper." Jade led the way with the staff glowing by her side. "Its not good to stay in one place for too long."

August had said the same thing. Arthur shivered at the thought of the tunnels being more then just tunnels. He blinked. He almost thought that he saw one of the carvings on the wall move. Maybe Kevia was right and this place had a mind of its own.

"How did you guys know that we were fighting up there?" Arthur asked, keeping away from the walls.

Jade handed the staff back to Edmond and dropped back to walk beside Arthur. "The walls tell us." She didn't look like she was joking. "If you listen carefully you can hear the walls whisper their secrets."

Arthur listened. "I don't hear anything."

"That's because you're not listening." She smacked Arthur on the back of the head with the palm of her hand.

"Ow." He rubbed the back of his head. "Well hitting me isn't going to help."

"Listen." Jade said more insistently.

Everyone grew quiet and listened. Arthur could almost make out soft words being spoken, but when he reached out for them they disappeared. His concentration was broken when the tunnel shook violently.

Edmond reached out and took hold of Jade's arm to help her balance. August toppled into Kevia, sending them both tumbling to the floor. Gwen fell into Arthur's arms. Percival and Gwaine held onto each other to stop from falling but quickly let go when the shaking stopped. They tried to look as if that didn't just happen, coughing and padding down their clothing.

Edmond helped August and Kevia to their feet. They looked around the tunnel with worried expressions. A cold gust of air came running down the tunnel.

"Move!" Kevia called out and started running down the tunnel.

"What is it?" Arthur yelled over the wind.

"The tunnels are moving."

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	8. Evil and Dangerous Magic

**Sorry this one took a little bit longer then the rest. **

**I'm going away for a while and won't have a chance to write so this is the last chapter for a while. Sorry.**

**I hope you enjoy it.**

Evil and Dangerous Magic

The group sprinted down the tunnels, turning corners sharply. Gwaine turned a corner too quickly, smacking his good shoulder. He groaned but kept moving. The wind was picking up, threatening to throw them into the walls, hard enough to break bones. Outrunning the wind seemed to be an impossible task but still they ran as if there was a way out.

Edmond ran in front, carrying the light. They'd come to forks in the road and, without hesitation; he would pick one of the routes. There were so many tunnels that it was amazing that he knew where he was going. These people had lived down here for who knows how long. Only they knew the ways through the tunnel. Usually the walls would whisper the way to them when they got lost but the tunnels were angry, or was it fear?

Then the wind changed direction, now blowing towards them. The wind had become so strong that they could barely even walk, let alone run. Arthur thought it would be wiser to turn back and run the other way, but Edmond pressed on in front of them. Wherever they were going it seemed like this was the only way to get there.

Arthur could feel his feet slipping, no longer able to keep them firmly on the ground. He, along with the others, went flying backwards, smacking hard into one of the walls of the tunnels. Arthur rubbed his head, trying to keep his eyes open. The wind kept them all pinned there but then, slowly, it began to die down until it was only a cool breeze. Arthur gasped and finally took in a gulp of air properly.

There was no time to rest and get their breaths back. There was no way of telling how long this calm would last or if this was really calm at all. They shakily got to their feet and dragged themselves down the hallways. Gwaine looked like he was about to pass out from the pain in both of his shoulders as he slouched against the wall of the tunnel. Arthur draped the knight's better arm over his shoulder and helped him continue, they couldn't stop.

Then the tunnels began to shake again and they were running. Arthur was at the back with Gwaine, trying to keep up. The ground became uneven and they wavered, trying to keep on their feet. Even the walls seemed to be moving. They rippled like water, getting closer then retreating again. The sight made Arthur's eyes hurt as he tried to concentrate on staying on his feet.

Then, as if the tunnels could tell that it wasn't doing enough, the large quake ran through the ground, sending them scrambling. Arthur landed with Gwaine slightly on top of him. Jade and August came to help them up, but they stopped half way as a large cracking sound echoed around them. They looked back just in time to see the earth opening, splitting up the group.

Edmond, Kevia, Gwen, and Percival were on the other side. Gwaine rolled off Arthur so that he could get to his feet and run to his wife, but it was too late, the opening had grown too large for anyone to even think of jumping across. August ran to try but Arthur grabbed his arm, holding him back from the edge.

"Edmond!" He heard Jade yell and saw her reach out across the void towards him. Edmond reached back but it was no use, the gap was too large, but still they reached as if there were some way to get back to the other person.

"Kev!" August screamed in Arthur's arms, struggling to get free, but Arthur held him tight. The girl he yelled to stared back, wide-eyed and fearful.

"I'll find you." She called. "I promise."

Tears ran down August's face. The ground rumbled again and the walls began to move. A wall of earth moved between the two groups, cutting them off completely from each other. Arthur only caught a glimpse of Gwen as she disappeared behind the wall. They were gone.

It was only then that Arthur let go of the boy, letting him fall to his knees. Arthur only stared, shocked at what just happened. It all happened so quickly that he barely had time to register that his wife had been torn away from him. He had lost so many. Merlin, Morgana, they were all gone. Now he had lost Gwen. How was he supposed to handle things now without her?

Gwaine stumbled over to him, placing his strong hand on his shoulder reassuringly. "We'll find them, Arthur. They're not gone forever. They're still out there and they're waiting for us to find them, but we won't if we just stand here defeated." It was as if Gwaine knew what he had been thinking. The knight had strength and he would never give up on his friends, even if they gave up on themselves.

Arthur sniffed, finally pulling his eyes away from where Gwen had been only moments before. August got to his feet, wiping the tears from his eyes and trying to look strong. Arthur admired the boy. He was so young and yet he still had the courage to go on. Jade took his hand and breathed a few words that Arthur did not understand. A fiery blue light appeared in her hands, lighting the darkness. She took the lead, pulling August along behind her.

Gwaine was right. They couldn't just stand here. There was still hope. So Arthur followed the woman holding the light in her hand. Gwaine took a deep breath, trying to forget the pain in his shoulders.

Eventually August pulled his hand away from Jade's grasp and walked ahead into the darkness without a word. His eyes could see well enough in the dark without the light, though he didn't go far. Arthur jogged up to walk next to Jade. Her head was lowered slightly. It was hard being pulled away from your friends, not sure if you would ever see them again. Arthur wondered if that happened a lot down here in the twists and turns of these unpredictable tunnels.

"Is he going to be ok?" Arthur gestured towards the boy walking ahead of them. Jade razed her head to follow his gaze.

"I don't know." She spoke the truth. No matter how well you know someone you can never really tell what the future holds for them. "I don't know him as well as the others. I haven't been down here for very long."

Arthur looked at her, confused. "But didn't you all grow up down here?"

"August did, but I've only just moved in."

"So you haven't always been down here." Arthur concluded. "Why did you choose to come live here?"

"Protection I guess, and to get away from the outside." She looked up to the ceiling. "It's dangerous out there for us. We don't quite belong there yet. The world isn't ready for us to live among them."

"We were working to bring magic back." Arthur had mentioned this before.

"Yes you are, but there is some magic that is more powerful and more unpredictable then the rest. It is harder to control." She explained. "You used to believe that magic was evil and dangerous. We come down here because our magic really is evil and dangerous." She lowered her eyes again.

"What do you mean?"

"Magic wasn't originally created to be controlled. It had a mind of its own before the people came along and tamed it. Most magic is tame now but there is still some around that still remembers the old days when it was wild and free." She told the story. "It will not bend to the will of man like you want it to. It hides inside us and fights to get out. It resides in only a few of us now."

"You have this wild magic inside you?" Arthur saw her in a different light now. She seemed stronger then she was before.

"The most powerful sorcerers do because they are the only ones who can keep it at bay. I hide down here because I don't want to hurt anyone." Her eyes met Arthur. "We stay down here to keep all of you safe."

"You sacrificed everything for people you don't even know."

"I know some of them. Like I said, I haven't been down here as long as the others. August is the longest. He was born down here."

"Where are his parents?" Arthur was almost afraid to hear the answer.

Jade looked back to the young boy, they could barely see him now in the dark. "It was years ago when he was very young. The tunnels got out of control and there was a cave in. His parents were caught in it."

"I understand. I never knew my mother and my father is gone too."

"Were you alone?"

The question caught Arthur off guard. He thought for a moment. "No." He was rather surprised with the answer. "I never felt like I was alone."

"August wasn't either." Jade almost smiled. "Kevia had come down maybe a few months before the cave in. She was there for him every step of the way. He may look up to Edmond and follow him everywhere but he is most strongly attached to Kevia. They are like brother and sister. You may not always be able to see it but its there. Did you have someone like that?"

"Yeah." Arthur thought of Merlin. He had always been there for him, forever loyal. "So what about Edmond, what's his story?"

"Well you know most of it already." She was referring to his voice. "I'm not sure how long he's been down here. Not as long as Kevia or August but not as little time as myself. Maybe a year."

"Why did he go to fight Atticus by himself?" Arthur had never really understood that part of the story.

"I'm not sure. None of them really talk about it anymore. It was a hard time for all of them."

"So you all came down here because you're dangerous to the outside world." Arthur summed it all up. "Is that all, or is there another part to your stories?"

Jade smiled slyly. "There might be, but we all have to have our secrets." That meant that she wasn't going to tell him.

Arthur frowned, disappointed. The longer he was down here, the more questions he found needed answers, but it wasn't easy to get them. These people guarded their darkest secrets very closely.

"Get down!" Gwaine yelled from behind them. They all managed to duck just in time to miss a flurry of sharp rocks that came flying out of the walls just above them. One of them caught the edge of Jade's hood, ripping it slightly. The walls rumbled in disappointment, but it wasn't over yet. Large pieces of the wall jutted out, making it harder and harder for them to maneuver their way down the tunnel.

They caught up to August who was trying to scramble over a large chunk of earth. Arthur grabbed him under his arms and lifted him over, then climbed up himself, turning back to help the others up and over.

The tunnels were getting more vicious. Even the roots that ran across the walls began to move, chasing them. They snapped at their heels, trying to pull them back. One of them wrapped firmly around Jade's ankle, pulling her down. She dropped the light and it disappeared, plunging them all into darkness. August spoke a few words and the torches on the walls lit up.

Now that they could see again, Gwaine and Arthur lunged forward to grab onto her arms as more vines and roots wrapped around her legs, trying to pull her into the darkness. Gwaine locked arms with her first, keeping her in place. Arthur drew his sword and hacked at the vines and roots until they finally released her. Without wasting another moment, Gwaine dragged her to her feet and pulled her down the hallway. The torches on the walls lit one by one as they ran, lighting their way.

They exited the tunnel and found themselves back in the spiraling room with the large and deep pit in the center. With August in the front they made their way up the path that curled around the sides of the pit. They could see more people on the other sides, scrambling to find safety from the tomb's wrath. Arthur gasped as he saw one of them slip off the side of the path and fall into the pit. He followed his falling form down until he couldn't see him anymore.

This place almost seemed more dangerous then the monsters that attacked Camelot at that very moment. The path rocked, almost knocking them over again. Arthur wondered if it was just him or was the path getting thinner. He stared up at the wall. It was moving, getting closer to them. The wall crawled over the path, making it thinner and thinner by the second. Soon enough there wouldn't be a path to run on at all.

Their pace slowed as they had to watch their step, careful not to misplace one single step or they would be plummeting down into the darkness. There was another tunnel, leading away from the path, just up ahead. August crawled in first, reaching his hand out to Jade, who took hold of it and was pulled in. Gwaine managed to kick of from the path and launch himself into the opening.

Arthur was almost there but then he lost his footing. One of his feet slipped off the edge and he was falling. He closed his eyes, sure that it was all over, when someone grabbed onto his arm, keeping him from falling. It wasn't big and strong like Gwaine's. It was smaller and more delicate. He opened his eyes and looked up to meet Jade's. She was definitely stronger then she looked. He grasped onto her wrist. Gwaine leaned over the edge beside her and reached down to help pull him up.

"Are you ok?" August asked. Arthur just nodded. His heart was pounding too loudly in his ears for him to form any comprehensible words.

"Come on. We have to keep moving." Jade helped him to his feet. She spoke a few words and more torches on the walls lit up.

Their eyes darted around them as they ran. Looking for any signs of another attack but found none. They came into a round room with a few tunnels leading away from it. Coffins lined the walls.

They stopped to catch their breaths. Arthur put his hands on his knees, trying to force air into his lungs. August sounded like he was wheezing. The tunnels had grown silent again, perhaps resting as well.

Arthur looked up to tell the others that they should keep moving and stay ahead of the tomb's wrath when he saw Gwaine's face. He walked over to stand beside him, following his gaze. Gwaine was staring at one of the coffins, wide-eyed. Inside lay a young man with short raven hair. He looked peaceful and undisturbed by the chaos going on around him. Unlike his usual clothing he was wearing chainmail and a cloak was wrapped around his shoulders like the day he died, but in his hands he held that familiar red neckerchief.

"Merlin?"

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	9. Someone that I used to know

**I'm back with a new chapter.**

**I was camping so I didn't have access to the internet. Had fun though.**

**Please read and enjoy.**

Someone that I used to know

"Merlin?"

Arthur couldn't believe what he was seeing and by the look on Gwaine's face he couldn't either. It was Merlin lying there peacefully in his coffin with a glass lid. He didn't look like he had died. Arthur had the urge to go over there, open the lid, and wake him up, saying something about him being lazy and that this was so typical Merlin. Instead he just stood there, staring.

This wasn't possible. They had buried him in the Lake of Avalon almost a year ago. How could he be here? But he just looked the same. No one had seen him in so long. All they had were their memories to remember what he looked like, the way he smiled, and how he laughed. He wasn't doing any of that now but the images still ran through Arthur's mind.

Both he and Gwaine were frozen. They couldn't move. The sight in front of them caught them completely off guard. Yes, Arthur had wondered if he would see any familiar faces down here. But this? They had set the boat Merlin was in on fire. But here he was.

Arthur found his eyes moving away from the body of his friend, not able to take the sight of him just lying there anymore. As soon as he moved his eyes away they fell on someone else. The next coffin over from Merlin's held a beautiful lady. Death had not taken that away from her. Her dark hair fanned out around her head and in her hands she held a small dagger. Arthur recognized it as the one he had given her for her birthday.

"Morgana." He whispered her name. That was all he could get out. This was just too much. It was like watching them die all over again. Morgana's death was still fresh in his mind. It had only been a few days ago that he saw her fall.

He watched both of them die and had been useless. There had been nothing he could do for either of them. All he had done was watch. Their faces still plagued his dreams and his nightmares. Could he have done something? Could he have saved them?

No. That is what he told himself but he never believed it. Arthur replayed their deaths in his mind over and over again. He went over every second of it and tried to find some way he could have prevented this. He believed that if he found it he might be at piece, but he never did.

_Ifs don't bring friends back from the dead. _It was true and it always would be. There was no way to turn back time and save them even if he did find that one thing he could have done differently.

Arthur didn't notice when Jade came to stand beside him. She looked at the two coffins and then back at Arthur. She could see that he was seconds away from breaking down. They didn't have time to deal with his emotions right now. The tomb wouldn't care if the king of Camelot was having an emotional crisis. So Jade did the only thing she could do. She talked to him.

"Did you know them well?" She asked, trying to make her voice sound as calm as possible.

"He was my best friend and she was my sister." He spoke quietly, still in shock.

"They were family." She understood his pain more then he realized. "It always hurts to loose the ones closest to us. But it would also hurt them to see you like this."

Arthur had never thought about it that way. If they could see the way he was handling this would it hurt them too?

"Its hard I know." Oh how she knew. "But there comes a time in the mourning process when you have to let them go. You can't be thinking about them right now. There are other lives at stake." Jade chose her next words carefully. "I understand that there are many people that you have lost and you blame yourself for what happened to them. You think that you failed to save them. You have to open your eyes to the truth now. You have to move on, because if you don't there are going to be more lives lost. They need you now and you have to be there for them. The same way I'm sure these two were there for you."

Jade was right. Arthur had to be strong. He had to find the courage inside him to keep fighting. He couldn't take the easy road and loose. There were lives at stake and he needed to get a grip.

He looked over at Gwaine who was still staring in shock at Merlin's still figure. Arthur placed his hand on his shoulder to pull him back to reality. Slowly Gwaine looked him in the eye. All the emotions he had felt over the last year were coming to the surface. He had tried to burry them deep inside himself but nothing ever stays trapped forever. It breaks free eventually and you can't keep avoiding it. You have to face it head on and not back down.

Gwaine knew this. He took a deep breath and looked back at the body of his friend. Then he closed his eyes and willingly turned away.

Arthur looked at Jade. He couldn't see much of her face behind the mask that she wore but she looked like she was fighting her own inner battle, a battle to keep control. Arthur knew that she was strong, both physically and mentally.

Jade had told him that inside most of the people down here was magic both evil and dangerous, but Jade didn't fit that description. She was kind and caring. He couldn't imagine her hurting people just for the sake of seeing them writhe in pain. But all four people that they had met down here wore masks. Each one of them had their pasts and their secrets. People change and people regret.

Arthur knew next to nothing about these people. For all he knew everything they said could be lies, but he didn't have time to question their motives. So far they had proved to be true to their word. Now everything lay with the Mother Keeper. Would she agree to help them?

He looked back to the two coffins then at Jade. She looked like she had suddenly found something very interesting about the floor.

"Jade, you said your magic was different from the people up there." He pointed at the ceiling.

"Yes." She looked up slowly.

"Is it in your power to bring Merlin and Morgana back?" He remembered her saying that the magic users with this kind of magic were stronger and more powerful.

Jade looked at Merlin, then at Morgana as if she were studying their faces. She was silent for a moment.

"No." She walked towards Merlin, laying her hand on the lid. "To save a life there must be a death. The balance of the world must be restored." She sounded like she was quoting someone and these weren't her words.

"But your magic is different. Aren't the rules different too?" Arthur was trying to grab at a sliver of hope."

"Some yes, but not this one. This rule goes for everyone."

"If you did bring them back then who's lives would be given in return?"

"I don't know." She looked Arthur in the eye. "Something like that is usually unpredictable unless someone steps forward and willingly gives their life. It could really be anyone. It could even be you. Though some have tried to control it with a few successes."

Arthur felt unsettled. Merlin and Morgana would not willingly take someone else's life in order to live again. That just wasn't who they were. So Arthur dropped the topic.

"Did Merlin have it?" Gwaine finally found his voice.

"Have what?" Jade asked.

"Evil and dangerous magic. He was Emrys wasn't he?"

Jade thought about it for a moment. "Emrys is a puzzle. He's different, but yes. I do believe he had dark magic running around inside him, but he also had tame magic." She looked back at Merlin. "I met your Merlin once. He had a good heart. That's what I remember most about him."

"You've met Merlin?" Merlin had never mentioned Jade, but there were many things he had never mentioned.

"Just the once. A very long time ago." She got a far off look in her eyes as she remembered.

"Shhh." Gwaine hushed them even though the room was already silent. "Did you hear that?"

The group looked around, listening for whatever Gwaine had heard. There it was. Footsteps. August took a step towards one of the tunnels leading away from the room. He listened carefully. Unlike the others, August was able to hear a drop of sweat falling from Arthur's face, hitting the ground. He could even hear Jade's heartbeat as it increased. Then there was Gwaine's labored breathing as he still tried to recover from their run.

August picked his way through all of those small things, searching through the darkness of the tunnel in front of him. There it was again. Footsteps. He closed his eyes, concentrating only on hearing those footsteps. There was definitely more then one person. One took very long strides. Another was walking much faster then the others as if in a hurry. Two of them had inconsistent walking patterns, just pulling themselves along. Perhaps one of them was hurt and the other was supporting them.

August listened closer, past their feet and up to their mouths to hear if they were talking. He only caught a few words from the one that sounded like they were in a hurry before he pulled himself back into the room, eyes wide. He didn't say a word to the others. He just ran into the darkness of the tunnel. The others quickly followed him. Jade lit the torches on the walls.

August turned a corner now out of sight. Arthur was at the front as they pursue the young boy through the tunnels. They didn't know what set him off but it was dangerous to wander these tunnels alone especially when they were restless and unpredictable. At any moment they could come alive, lashing out at them.

The group stopped when they finally caught up with August. He was at a fork in the road and was trying to decide which path to take.

"What is it August? What do you hear?" Jade came to stand beside him.

He had his eyes closed and was listening intently. Sounds echoed off the walls of the tunnels, making it difficult to pinpoint the original. It didn't take him long to trace the sound back. His eyes shot open and he dashed for one of the tunnels with the others right on his heels.

August was fast. They almost lost him a couple times as he disappeared around corners. He was following the trail and was not willing to let it go.

They were nearing the source of the footsteps now. Even the others could hear their voices now, though muffled and incomprehensible. August stopped, cupping his hands around his mouth.

"Kevia!" He yelled. The voices and the footsteps stopped. Then they started running.

"August!" The muffled yell came from the other side of the wall where another tunnel ran.

August mirrored them on the other side and ran. "Kev!" He called out.

"August!" He heard her call back, clearer now.

Arthur felt hope rise inside him as he followed the young boy calling out to his friend.

"Kev!" He yelled one last time, turning another corner, and there she was. She stood at the other end of the hall in her bird's mask. The two ran to each other. They fell to their knees in each other's arms.

"I told you I'd find you." She whispered. A tear appeared under August's mask. Three other figures appeared out of the dark behind Kevia.

"Gwen!" Arthur ran forward, wrapping his wife in his arms as if the prove that she was really there and not an illusion.

His sudden embrace forced her to let go of the one she had been supporting. Edmond stumbled beside her, leaning against the dirt wall. Gwaine clapped Percival on the back. Percival did the same back, causing Gwaine to groan as pain shot through his shoulders.

"Edmond, are you alright?" Jade went to see how he was doing. There was a crack at the top of his mask and there was some blood running down his white skull mask. Some of his raven hair pocked out through crack.

"He saved my life." Gwen explained.

Jade removed a handkerchief from her pocket and dabbed at his head wound. Edmond didn't have the voice to try and convince her that he was all right when he obviously wasn't.

"Always the hero Ed." Jade managed to clean most of the blood away but she couldn't get the stain off his mask. "You're going to get yourself killed one of these days…"

She shut her mouth tight when she saw the look on his face. She wished she hadn't said it knowing that it was a hard subject for him. None of the others seemed to notice as she went back to cleaning his wound.

"Is everything alright Gwaine?" Percival looked at his friend. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

Gwaine hesitated, looking to Arthur who nodded his approval. He looked back to Percival, trying to find the words to best explain. He took a deep breath.

"We found Merlin." Everyone went silent.

"Morgana as well." Arthur added, letting go of his wife.

"What do you mean you found him?" Gwen looked stunned.

They lead the others back to the small room that held the bodies of Merlin and Morgana. Gwen wanted to break down at the sight of her friends in this tomb. Percival was speechless.

"I could have sworn I left them here?" Kevia's voice broke everyone out of their trance. She was staring at a spot just in front of Merlin.

Edmond walked over, reaching a hand behind the case and retrieving a small bag that clinked as it swung in his hands. Silently he handed it to Kevia.

"I guess Merlin must have been guarding them for me?"

"What's in the bag?" Arthur asked.

She untied the string at the top and pulled out one of the objects inside. It was a large rusted nail. "I had to get new ones from the Depth after the other ones broke."

"What is the Depth?"

"It's the deepest part of the tomb." August explained. "Garth is the only one brave enough to live down there. He supplies us with the equipment we need."

"Still don't know where he gets all that junk from." Jade added.

"Why do you need long rusted nails?" Arthur didn't quite grasp how this was equipment.

"We need it to get to the Mother Keeper. It will make more sense when we get there." Kevia attached the sack to her belt.

Then the group fell silent. None of them wanted to be the ones to suggest that they leave this room.

Arthur looked at the body of his best friend. It didn't look like he was going anywhere. They didn't have time to stand here and mourn. Neither Merlin nor Morgana needed their help, at least not anymore. But there were people who did and they were running out of time.

"We have to go. The tunnels could start moving again." He took Gwen's hand to keep her close. He wasn't going to let her out of his sight again.

"Very well." Jade led the group out of the room. They all looked back at least once.

They came out onto the path again that circled the giant pit. The trip was quiet. They all stuck close together in fear that any second they might be separated again. Edmond and Jade were at the front with Edmond's staff. Their arms brushed against each other they were standing so close together. August looked like he wanted to cling to Kevia's arm and never let go but he wanted to look strong and not afraid so stuck to just walking next to her. Arthur held Gwen's hand tightly. Gwaine and Percival brought up the rear.

Eventually they got to the top where they met a flat wall of earth at the end of the path. Looking up they could just make out an entrance about twenty feet above them. The entrance at the top stretched wide and the path was thin. If someone jumped from up their at the wrong spot they would end up plummeting to their deaths at the bottom of the pit.

"So." Arthur broke the silence. "Is there some secret stairway to the top?"

"Don't be daft." Kevia pushed through the group to the front then turning to face them. "We're going to climb it."

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	10. We Might Fall

**Here we are with chapter 10. Thanks for sticking with me so far. I know that you probably hate me for keeping so many secrets and making you wait for answers. I promise it is all worth it.**

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We Might Fall

Arthur stared up at the flat wall they intended to climb. At first he thought Kevia had been joking but when he saw her remove some rope that was wrapped around her waste he knew she was serious. She bent down and August climbed onto her back. With Edmonds help they tied August's hands together then looped his arms around Kevia's neck. He wrapped his legs around her waste so he wouldn't choke her.

She retrieved a couple large nails from the bag then handed the bag to Edmond. "Follow my lead." She said and began to climb with August secure on her back. She did this by ramming the nails into the wall, using them to pull herself up. There was a nail in each hand. One of them was always securely stuck in the wall. She would hang from that nail as she rammed the other nail in a little bit higher. She continued this way. She was amazingly strong for her size and the nails may have looked rusted and weak but they did their job supporting both August and her weight.

"Edmond will carry you Arthur." Jade told him. Edmond turned around and gestured for him to climb onto his back. Arthur didn't seem to have much of a choice so he let Jade tie his hands together with the rope. He held on tightly as Edmond began to climb the wall after Kevia and August.

"Do you think you can climb this with someone on your back?" Jade asked Percival.

"I think so." Percival said, looking up at the wall sizing it up. He would struggle but he would make it.

Jade tied the rope around Gwaine's hands. "Up you go."

Gwaine groaned as he climbed onto Percival's back. His shoulders still hurt terribly. This just wasn't his day. Percival used the nails Jade gave him to pull himself slowly up the wall.

"Your turn." Jade said, turning to Gwen. "I'll be the one carrying you up."

"Are you sure?" Gwen questioned. "It's very high."

"There's nothing to worry about." Jade assured her. "I've climbed this wall a few times. Edmond even made me carry him once to test me. You can trust me Gwen."

Gwen nodded and let her tie the rope around her hands. Jade easily passed Percival on the wall. Gwen was lighter then Edmond so it was much easier.

Arthur felt like he was going to fall quite a few times but Edmond didn't slow down. Kevia and August were already waiting for all of them at the top. They pulled Arthur and Edmond up. August untied the rope from Arthur's hands. Edmond didn't even look tired. Apparently if you lived down here this was a daily activity. August was still too young to be able to climb the wall himself but he would soon learn.

Soon the others joined them, though they did have to wait a while for Percival and Gwaine to finally make it to the top. Percival fell to his knees, gasping for air. Kevia scratched her right forearm thoughtfully then took the nails back, returning them to the brown bag and reattaching them to her belt.

Arthur hadn't noticed, but as he looked around he found that they were all in a very large room, like a throne room. It was filled with people, though none of them had noticed the group's arrival. They were all staring at something at the other end of the room. Arthur got on his tiptoes to look over the crowd and gasped. It wasn't a something they were staring at but someone. He couldn't make out what they looked like from here.

Edmond pulled out a few cloaks from a sort of closet that was carved out of the wall and handed one to each of them.

"Pull the hoods down so no one can see your faces." August told them. "It's dangerous if anyone finds out you're here. We must wait until they all leave."

"How long will that be?" Percival asked, pulling his hood over his face until it was hidden in shadows. The others did the same.

"It shouldn't be too long." Jade estimated. "Remember, don't bring any attention to yourselves." She walked over to Edmond and pulled his hood down a little more so his face too was hidden in shadow. Arthur didn't understand why Jade, Kevia, and August were not pulling down there hoods to hide their faces and Edmond did.

"Edmond and the Mother Keeper aren't on good terms with each other." August whispered beside him as if he had already sensed the question forming in Arthur's mind.

"Why?"

"Edmond is very powerful, at least when he used to be able to speak he was. She sees him as a threat to her position." He explained.

Silently they joined the back of the crowd that had squished into the throne room. No one moved and no one spoke. Then someone rose from the throne on the other side of the hall. There was something strange about the way they walked. As they moved there was a skittering sound. The person came to the center of the room and the people circled around her. Then she removed her hood.

Gray hair fell from her head with a few black streaks running through it. Her skin was dark and wrinkled. She tilted her head to the ceiling and opened her mouth. Her lips didn't move but a beautiful tune came out, echoing off the walls. Soon others voices joined hers as they began to sing. More and more voices joined in as the song moved through the crowd towards them.

Jade was the first out of the group to open her mouth and sing. It wasn't in any language Arthur knew. It was beautiful. Everyone's voices just seemed to blend together perfectly. Arthur and the others from the surface world felt no urge to sing so they only listened. Edmond didn't join in either but he looked like he was in a trance. Arthur saw his eyes sparkle to life as they turned a beautiful gold under his hood.

Arthur didn't have to see the eyes of the other people to know they were doing the same thing. Then the room began to shake but the people stood strong. None of their voices wavered from the song. They even sang louder as if to be heard over the rumblings of the tunnels.

Then everything went still and the people in the room stopped singing, but the song was still playing. The walls still echoed their voices as it was lulled to sleep. The song had done its job and the tunnels went back to the way they were. Something about the music had calmed the raging tunnels. If only one of the people had been singing then it wouldn't have worked. It took all of them to finally stop the tunnels rage.

Without another word the people began to leave the room. Soon it was empty except for the woman in the center, a few people who looked like guards, and the group. The woman had her back to them now.

Jade led them slowly across the room towards her, stopping a few feet away. They waited in silence for the woman to notice them. Now that they were closer Arthur saw what had been making that scuttling sound. Under the woman's cloak were six long black insect legs. The top half of her was human enough but the bottom half was that of a giant spider.

Her long black legs twitched and moved as she turned to face them. There was no smile on the woman's face. Her red eyes looked them up and down, assessing her new visitors. Then her eyes fell on Jade who stood at the front, waiting for her to speak.

"Mother Keeper." Jade knelt down on one knee and bowed before the Mother. The others did the same, following her lead. The Mother Keeper waved her hand for them to stand.

"Why have you come to see me child?" Her voice was old and crackly.

"We have come seeking your help Mother." Jade explained, hesitating before she continued. "As I'm sure you are aware, the world above has come under attack."

The Mother Keeper narrowed her eyes at Jade. "What concern is it of mine?"

"Camelot has been our protection for years. If it falls we will be vulnerable." Jade was getting nervous, which was unlike her. "We must help them."

Her eyes widened in anger. "We must? What have they ever done for us? They would have us killed. How could you ask this of me?"

"But…"

"They don't even have the courage to come ask me themselves. No one outside this place knows it exists. That is what's keeping us safe."

"But Mother they have come to ask us." Jade gestured for Arthur to come forward. Arthur came up beside her and removed his hood.

"I am King Arthur Pendragon of Camelot." He introduced himself.

"I know who you are Pendragon." She spat. "And I don't trust you."

"Camelot is under attack. If we don't get help soon we will not last."

"Who told you of this place? How did you get here?" Her beady eyes stared at him.

August was about to step forward but Edmond held him back, stepping forward instead. He let his skull mask be seen under his green hood.

"You." The Mother Keeper stared daggers at him. "How dare you. You have doomed us all. If they know we exist they will kill us."

"But Mother Keeper we wish to live in harmony. I promise no one will harm you." Arthur tried to convince her.

"More Pendragon lies. You lot up there are evil and only wish to destroy us. Why don't you leave us alone?" She screamed. "We just want to be left alone to live in peace."

"But we want peace too and…"

"I thought I could trust you Jade." She cut him off, her eyes falling on Jade who looked absolutely terrified. "I never expected you would be the one to betray me."

"But I haven't betrayed you. I want to keep this place safe just like you."

"Enough!" She screeched. "You will destroy us all."

"But…" Jade took a step forward toward the Mother Keeper.

"Get away!" The Mother Keeper lashed out. Her right arm appeared from under her cloak. It was covered in the shell of a spider and looked like a claw. It stretched out towards Jade, growing in length to reach her. Jade didn't have time to react as the claw smacked her to the side, sending her flying. She crashed into the wall, knocked out cold.

Edmond ran to her. He knelt down beside her, brushing some of her long black hair out of her face. He looked back at the Mother Keeper, anger clear in his eyes.

The Mother Keeper took a step back on her spider legs. The guards came up behind her, ready to fight to the death for her.

"You're meant to protect us." Kevia yelled at her. "If Camelot falls then we truly are doomed. Camelot protects us. It is time we returned the favor."

"You have been misled by these outsiders." The Mother Keeper concluded. "They have turned you against me."

"You aren't seeing straight." Kevia tried to get through to her. "Do the walls not speak to you anymore? Camelot has changed. They no longer hunt us."

"How dare you. I am the Mother Keeper. The walls tell me everything. Camelot is the same dark place that it always was. They would never accept us." She refused to see.

"You are the one who is blind. Open your eyes. If we don't move now we will seal our fates. Make the right choice." Kevia would not give up.

"My eyes are clear. I should have left you to die where I found you Kevia. I always knew you were trouble. This is your fault. You are the one who has corrupted them." This made perfect sense to her. "You deserved to die in that snow."

The Mother Keepers arm sped towards Kevia in a fist. It hit her square in the chest, sending her flying back. There was a terrible cracking sound as it hit her. Percival tried to catch her but she hit him too hard and he stumbled back.

"No!" Arthur yelled as he saw them slip over the edge.

Gwaine ran and tried to reach for Percival's hand, but it was too late. Percival and Kevia disappeared over the edge. Arthur ran to Gwaine's side, staring over the edge, but he couldn't make them out. They had already disappeared into the darkness of the deep pit.

"You killed them!" Gwaine yelled, drawing his sword. The guards drew theirs as well.

The Mother Keeper looked surprised at what just happened. She hadn't meant to hit her that hard. She stared down at her hands in shock.

"What have you done?" August cried. "What did they ever do to you?"

She remained quiet, still in shock at what she just did. She absentmindedly waved for her guards to lower their weapons.

"You want your precious Camelot to be safe from the monsters?" Her voice was quiet and dark. "I will not send my people up there to fight your battle Arthur Pendragon."

"So you won't help us?" Arthur razed his hand to block Gwaine from charging her.

"I never said that." She pulled a scrap of cloth from a pocket inside her cloak. "If I help you then you must leave this place and never return. You will not speak a word of this place to anyone. If you break my terms I will give you hell."

"I understand."

"Take this." She gestured for Arthur to take the cloth in her hand. "There is a mark on it."

Arthur took the cloth and examined it. Sewn into it were three black bolts of lightening that met at the center. "What does it mean?"

"To save Camelot you must find the one with this tattooed on their arm." She explained. "The blood of only one must be spilt to end the war. Find them and kill them. Only then will the monsters leave. The magic that drew the beasts here will be anchored with that person."

"Do you know where they are?"

"It will be easier to find them then you think. I do believe you have already met."

Arthur thought back to all the people he had met since the invasion had begun. "You know who it is don't you?"

The Mother Keeper nodded but said nothing.

"Then why don't you just tell us?"

"It is not my place. You must discover them on your own. Now leave before I change my mind." She flicked her wrist and a tunnel appeared leading away from the throne room.

"One more thing. Are they human?"

"In some ways yes. In others no." That was all she would give them.

Edmond picked Jade up into his arms and led the group out of the room. Gwaine walked backwards after the others, still pointing his sword at the Mother Keeper. They lost Percival that day, another friend to mourn. Arthur was last to leave the room.

"Remember Arthur." He stopped and looked back to where the Mother Keeper stood. "This person must die to save Camelot. There is no other way. Either they die or we all fall."

Arthur left without speaking another word to the Mother Keeper, her words still rung in his ears. Why was she warning him that there was no other way? When he found this person he would run them through the heart himself. They deserved to die for all the lives they ruined.

The group made their way down the torch lit tunnel. They got the help they came for but still they left defeated. The walls whispered to them, showing them the way.

Arthur couldn't understand the words it whispered in their ears even if he had been listening. The walls watched them closely.

Arthur did not understand but Edmond did. He heard the walls fear as it whispered. "We might fall. We might fall."

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	11. That single moment

**I am so sorry. I got writers block and then I went to camp and I just got back yesterday and realized that I hadn't updated in weeks.**

**So I made this a longer chapter then usual.  
**

**This isn't my best chapter but I promise it will get better.  
**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin. Only my OCs.  
**

**Here is the next chapter and I hope you enjoy it.**

That single moment

The group walked quickly through the tunnels. This tunnel however was different then the others. Unlike the ones they had gone through before, this one was filled with all kinds of obstacles. Sometimes the walls would get so close together that they thought they would never get through without suffocating first. Or they would have to get on their stomachs and crawl.

Strange objects stuck out of the walls. Arthur recognized a few, like the tips of rusted swords or the shields now bent and broken. A cracked hourglass protruded from the earth on his left. All of the sand had run out of it. Arthur felt dread come over him as if this simple object was some kind of sign for the future. He found his pace quickening as if they were pressed for time even more then they already were.

There were other strange objects that no one from this point in history would recognize or understand. A hunk of metal hung from a silver chain. It had a white face and there were two black lines, one long and one short, drawn on. There were little black arrows on the end of the black lines and they were pointing at numbers written around the outside. The numbers went from 0 to 12 and both of the arrows were pointing at the zero. Something told Arthur that this wasn't quite right. He shook his head and looked away.

Some of the things Arthur couldn't even describe but each one of them felt like memories now lost. None of them seemed quite right and all were out of place as if they didn't belong. They all seemed to be screaming out in their own way for someone to notice them and accept them for what they were but no one ever would. They were broken beyond repair and no one wanted something that was broken and couldn't be fixed.

Arthur looked over at Edmond, who was still carefully holding Jade's limp body. He was leading the group and Arthur was following close behind. Edmond's face didn't give away any emotion but his mask was covering half his face. Arthur could not see the pain that filled his eyes or the feeling of loss that had taken hold of his heart.

Edmond had worked very hard at never letting on what he was feeling but he had no control of what was going on inside him. The last time he had let his emotions take over he had lost the ability to ever speak again. He so desperately wanted someone to talk to but no one could understand. No one, except for Kev. She had been the first to come to him after he lost his tongue. Somehow she had known exactly what he was feeling without him saying.

Kevia had been the person that you could trust with anything and she would always be there to get you out of trouble. When Edmond had first arrived in the tomb he had felt lost and alone. No one could possibly understand what he had gone through before and that's when he met August and Kevia. With them around he always felt like there was hope. Now everything was different.

Everyone was feeling the pain that came from loosing a friend. The outsiders were thinking of the knight they had come to know and care for. Percival had been strong, someone you could always lean on and trust to be there to catch you when you fell. But no one was there to catch him when he fell.

Gwaine was taking the loss of Percival harder then the others. The two of them had become very close and Percival had been there for Gwaine when Merlin died. Gwaine thought back to all the great times they had had together. He almost smiled when he thought of the pranks they had pulled. Gwaine would give anything to be able to have more times like that with his friend. But Percival was gone and he was never coming back. Gwaine just couldn't accept that.

Gwaine was so lost in his memories that he barely noticed the small hand that slipped into his large one. August had seen the fight to accept the situation going on inside the knight. He understood what it felt to have an inner battle though he was sure that the knight's fight was very different and easier then his.

One of the points of the underground tunnels was for people to find others like them who understood and accepted them, but still people kept to themselves down here. It was hard to get close to people when you had been rejected your whole life. August had grown up down here and didn't know much about the dangers of the outside world other then the stories he was told.

His parents had always told him that keeping secrets would protect him. To tell people the truth could hurt him as well as them, but keeping secrets hurt. August couldn't help the tears that fell know. Other then his parents only three people had ever known his secret and that three had now become two. August needed someone to hold his hand through this as much as Gwaine did.

Arthur had Gwen's hand to hold and he held on tightly. He wondered how many more friends he would lose before this was over. War was never kind and it never left anyone without permanent scars. Regret plagued the survivors who had lost loved ones. There was always that one thing that you never got to tell them. That one thing you forgot to say and now it was too late. They would do anything to turn back time and just be able to make them understand how much they meant to them.

Maybe that would fill the void growing inside their hearts, if they had only told their loved ones how they had really felt. If only they had known that one-day their family and friends wouldn't be there anymore. It only took a moment for everything to change. It would be that single moment, the one you could never take back, that would destroy the world in the end. Everything would come crashing down around you and there would be nothing that could be done to stop it.

Arthur looked to Jade's still body with sadness in his eyes. She didn't know yet what had happened. What would the news do to her? All these people ever wanted to do was help them and they had paid the price. Even after the loss of a friend they were still helping. Arthur did not understand how they didn't blame them for the tragedy. But they knew that Arthur and the others had lost a friend as well and would loose many more if they didn't help.

Jade didn't stir when Edmond adjusted his grip so he wouldn't drop her. A terrible thought popped into Arthur's head. What if Jade never woke up? How hard had she hit her head on the wall when she had been thrown? He didn't want to think about the possibility that they had already lost another but the thought wouldn't leave his mind.

Jade was kind and adventurous. She had vouched for them to the Mother Keeper. Arthur cursed the old spider inside his head. He would never forgive her for what she did even if her clue helped them save Camelot. He looked down at the small piece of cloth she had given him. The three lightning bolts that joined at the center looked ugly to him. He would kill whoever bore this mark without mercy for all the pain they had caused. They had indirectly killed Kevia and Percival and directly killed so many others. Somewhere they were walking around alive and breathing unlike so many. Arthur would soon fix that.

Arthur tilted his head slightly as he looked at Jade. A strand of her black hair had fallen over her forehead. She reminded Arthur so much of Morgana. He quickly looked away not wanting to be bombarded by more memories and regret. He and Morgana had fought for so long and he had just gotten her back only to lose her again with no chance of ever getting her back again.

Gwen too found that Jade reminded her of her old friend who had once been her enemy. She tightened her hand around her husband's, thankful that he was still here with her. She vowed that no one would ever take him away from her, she wouldn't let them.

Gwen felt Arthur tug on her hand, forcing her to stop. She saw that he was looking ahead of them so she looked too. Edmond had stopped in front of them. Gwen searched for the reason and found it. Jade was moving. Her eyes flickered open a crack and she razed her hand to her head, moaning in pain. The rest of the group felt relief come over them. They wouldn't have to add another to the list of friends they had lost.

Edmond didn't say anything but it was obvious that he too was relieved to see her awake. Jade looked up to see Edmond staring down at her and she smiled slightly. But her smile disappeared as a shot of pain ran through her head and she cringed. Edmond's concern was obvious. Slowly he lowered her so her back was against the wall. He pushed her hood back, revealing the rest of her long black hair, and began to look for obvious head wounds.

Jade gasped when his fingers skimmed a spot at the back of her head. He removed his fingers and revealed the blood that covered the tips. Gently he made her bend her head so he could inspect the source of the blood further. His face gave nothing away and the group was anxious to know how serious it was. He reached down and tore a long piece of fabric from his green cloak and tied it tightly around Jade's head to keep pressure on the wound. Then he helped Jade to her feet. She wobbled but managed to keep her balance with Edmond's help.

Through squinted eyes she looked at the group. They all looked away, not having the courage to meet her eyes and waited for her to figure it out. It didn't take long. Her eyes widened.

"Where are Percival and Kev?" No one answered but the silence spoke for them. "No." Tears came to her eyes. "It can't be true. Tell me it isn't true." She looked to Edmond though he would be the last person to be able to tell her. The look in his eyes seemed to explain everything. She pulled away from him and he didn't have the heart to reach out to her.

"Jade." It was August who spoke first, his voice quivered and tears fell from his eyes like a waterfall. "I'm sorry."

"This wasn't supposed to happen." She was still trying to find a way that what had obviously happened hadn't. But it had.

"Jade." Arthur stepped forward, letting go of Gwen's hand. "The Mother Keeper said that she should have left Kevia to die in the snow. What did she mean?"

Realization crossed her face and she lowered her head, not meeting anyone's eyes. She was silent for a moment then she looked up again.

"That's part of Kevia's secret you see. The Mother Keeper brought her here herself after…" She didn't continue.

"She told you?" August looked hurt, apparently not even he knew about this.

"It was just after I came and I didn't know any of you yet. I was exploring and I came to the path that goes around the pit and I saw her. She was standing so close to the edge just looking into the darkness. She was about to step off but before she could I pulled her back. She tried to fight her way out of my grip but I wouldn't let her. I wouldn't let her just jump. Then she just gave up and cried into my arms." Jade was having trouble telling the story. "She said that I should have let her jump. I asked her why and she told me about that she had had a nightmare about a night five years ago when she was just fifteen and the Mother Keeper found her close to death in the snow not far from here. Apparently there had been some kind of battle…

Five years earlier

Her feet slowly dragged themselves across the floor of the forest. Leaves crunching under her bear feet. Twigs cracked in the silence of that cold, dark, tragic night. The uneven ground making her sway back and forth but she was unwilling to stop. Her breath came in short bursts. She stumbled as her foot caught an out of place root; nearly falling over she steadied herself by placing her hand against the ruff bark of a nearby tree. Taking a short brake to catch her breath. Soft white snow started to fall from the sky blanketing the ground. The snowflakes melted as they touched her red fevered cheeks. Slowly she pushed herself away from the tree and stumbled on.

She arched her back, staring at the now snow covered ground. Watching all the details for what could be the last time. With one of her shaking hands she pulled her cloak around her to shelter, if only a little, from the cold. Her feet now scratched and bruised started to loose all feeling. Her hood covered her tear-covered face, hiding her features that were now distorted with pain. She cringed as her cloak caught on a branch and the effort of trying de get it back hurt. She gasped in the cold air, freezing her lungs. The pain knocked her to the ground. The air didn't seem to be reaching her lungs fast enough. She scrambled over the cold ground toward a tree. Grasping both sides of the tree she tried to pull herself up but the strength had completely left her legs. She slumped against the base of the tree.

"Not here. Not now." She wept. "I don't want to go." Her words fell on def ears. She was alone. "I should have known this would happen." She cried out loud. "Why did it have to be me?"

She had never dreamed that this was how it would end. "Help me." She whimpered. She could not hide that she was scared. "Is this the price I must pay? But maybe I deserve it."

As she sat with her back to the tree she grasped her left shoulder. It had not stopped bleeding; the dark stain was still spreading across her shirt and dripping down her chainmail. The cold was starting to make her body go numb and the pain in her shoulder was disappearing. Soon she wouldn't be able to feel anything at all. Eventually everything would slowly slip away until there was nothing left of her except an empty shell of a girl who made all the wrong choices.

No one would mourn her and eventually no one would remember the girl she had once been, the one they knew and cared for. She was a monster to them now.

She was shaken from her memories as she began to cough. She leaned over and spat. Shocked, as she saw the red liquid melt into the snow. She swayed slightly. Her vision was clouding.

A snapping of twigs caught her attention and she turned to see the dark shape of a stag cutting through the darkness. She smiled. "Perhaps I'm not alone after all." The stag came closer, not aware of the bad things she had done and not caring. Then very slowly her eyes fluttered shut as the stag came even closer and she slumped to the side, a smile still engraved on her motionless face.

With her failing hearing she could hear a voice calling something. It was her name. She had almost forgotten the sound of someone saying her own name. She had almost forgotten what her name was. But the sound cut through the dark that surrounded her, reaching out to her. Her eyelids fluttered. A hand rested on her good shoulder. The touch sent a shot of warmth through her frozen body.

"Kevia?" The unknown person's voice cracked the barrier to her slowly shutting down mind. Maybe there was still hope.

The present.

Jade had gone silent, not saying anything more.

"What had she done?" Arthur asked. Jade hadn't said why the people thought Kevia was a monster and she didn't look like she was going to.

"Kevia never told me about everything that happened that night." Jade explained. "We talked for a long time but she never said. We talked about a lot of things…"

"We promised we'd always be there for each other. Always." Jade began to sob. "This can't be happening. Not again."

Then she ran away from the group and down the tunnel, dodging the objects sticking out of the walls that got in her way.

"Jade wait!" Arthur called after her. August ran to follow her and the others followed.

"Come back, Jade!" August yelled. They could see a light at the end of the tunnel now. It didn't come from any torches attached to the walls. It was sunlight.

"Jade!" Gwen shouted. They didn't know what was out there and it was dangerous to go alone but Jade didn't stop.

The light from the sun blinded them when they reached the end of the tunnel. They stopped, trying to blink the dark spots from their eyes. They had been underground and had gotten used to the darkness. When they finally regained their sight they saw that they had come out into the stone courtyard in front of the entrance to the crumbling castle.

They looked around for Jade and found her still standing in the entrance way to the tunnel. She hadn't come into the light yet and she was staring wide-eyed at something in front of them. Her look of surprise immediately turned to anger. She reached for a spear that was sticking out of the wall and maliciously ripped it out. She pulled it out so hard that the earth around the spear exploded and crumbled to the floor of the tunnel.

When she stepped out of the tunnel the entrance immediately disappeared behind her. She came to stand protectively in front of the group. They all turned to see what had made her so angry and immediately understood.

A dark, cloaked figure had come out to stand in the middle of the courtyard. He turned to face them. His presence seemed to darken the skies as dark rain clouds rolled in, blocking out the sun.

Arthur, Gwen and Gwaine reached for their swords, drawing them and pointing them at the enemy. August growled and Edmond lifted his hands, ready to cast a spell at any moment.

"Atticus." Arthur spat.

"Well, well, well." Atticus clapped his hands together mockingly. "I'd like to say this is a surprise but it really isn't. I hope you had fun but it's time to come back to reality now because it all ends here."

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	12. Dark Pasts and Dangerous Events

**I'm trying to write the next chapters quickly because I'm going back to school soon and I won't be able to write as often.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin, or any Greek myths, just my OCs.**

**Hope you enjoy.**

Dark Pasts and Dangerous Events

"Atticus." The name felt dark as it crossed everyone's mind. Just by looking at him you could tell he was too far gone to ever come back to the good person he may once have been. Had he ever been a good person to begin with or was he always this, a monster in a human's skin?

Atticus was a liar and a betrayer. He would never change, no matter how much anyone tried to reach him. It was not in his nature to do good and it never would be. So why did this person in front of them seem so wrong and out of place as if he wasn't really here at all. But they could see him. He stood in the middle of the stone courtyard grinning like a mad man, sending shivers up everyone's spines.

He always seemed so calm as if he knew exactly how everything was going to play out and it would be in his favor. He didn't say it but they all knew. Atticus knew where they had disappeared to and that they had tried to seek aid from the Mother Keeper. He also knew that they had failed, in a way.

To Atticus everyone was a fly in a more elaborate web of events. Unknown to him he was only a pawn himself, but who was the master? Will they be able to find them and stop them before its too late and Camelot is lost forever? That's the big question isn't it, but it won't be as hard or as simple as they may think.

The master is close and the end draws near. It is so close now that they can feel it breathing down their necks. Will it end in victory or tragedy? Perhaps it will go in a completely different direction where neither party truly wins.

"How was it down there in the crypts? I've heard so much about that place. They say the dead walks its hallways and anyone who goes in will never come out. Alas here you are. Such a pity." Atticus pouted. "Though I must say I would have been disappointed if I had missed your demise and the unraveling of your futures. It will be such a beautiful sight."

"You're crazy!" Gwen blurts out, meaning every word. "What could you possibly gain from the death of so many innocent people?"

"Yes most of them are innocent." He admits but doesn't really care. "I didn't come here to kill random people for my own amusement though their screams are like music I must say. I killed them for all of you really. I sense your pain and I love it."

"Then why not just kill us first." Arthur didn't understand his twisted mind.

"That isn't any fun. Why get rid of the fools. The world would be so dull without them." Atticus grinned, his eyes still hidden in shadow. "I have enjoyed watching you dance and I see you have brought along a few familiar faces to join the party."

Arthur was surprised. Atticus knew them? Was he a part of their secrets that they hid so well behind their masks.

"Hello Jade." His eyes fell on her first. Jade's grip tightened on the spear in her hand. "Is that any way to greet an old friend?"

"We were never friends." Jade was seething.

"Just as feisty as ever. That fury was always useful on the battlefield." Atticus was pulling strings. He knew their secrets and slowly, bit-by-bit, he was pulling them into the light.

"What do you mean?" They had been given nothing but questions and more questions. Gwaine wanted answers.

"Jade, my dear, you never told them?" Atticus' surprise was overacted. "I'm shocked. Even after fighting along side each other on the battlefield as comrades you betray me and stab me in the back? How could you?"

"Easy." Jade spat. "You betrayed me first."

"Did I? I can't recall." Atticus turned his back to the group, pretending to think.

"You left me there to die Atticus. I was just another pawn in your game for power. And to think I ever thought of us as comrades." Jade remembered everything. "You may have won that day but I will never let you do it again. I will save this city just as I should have saved mine when you destroyed it."

"I destroyed it?" He turned to face them again. "As I recall you where there destroying right along side me."

Everyone looked at Jade but she said nothing. She didn't dare meeting any of their eyes so she just stared at the ground, tears appearing in her eyes. Atticus smiled. One down.

"Is that August? Wow I barely recognized you." He moved onto his next target. "Still struggling with your inner demon. How is that going?"

"None of your business." August growled.

"I'm surprised that you've lasted this long. Fighting all by yourself never telling anyone the truth. Not even your parents, and now it's too late."

"Be quiet!" August wanted to charge him but Edmond held him back with a firm hand.

"They warned you not to go above ground but you didn't listen. Now look at you, barely holding on. How does it feel to be fighting all the time for a life that no one cares about?"

August stopped struggling. His eyes had grown wide. How could Atticus have known that? How could he have known August's greatest fear? The fear that his fight was pointless and that no one really cared whether or not he lived.

"How did you?"

"You'd be surprised at how much I know. For example I know that you weren't born this way like everyone thinks. Were you August?"

August began to shake. This was too much. Atticus was somehow getting into his mind, twisting everything into knots. It hurt so much.

"You've never had the courage to tell anyone the truth. You welcomed that beast into your body because you thought you could handle it but you're loosing the fight. You're just a child in over his head."

"That's not true." August tried to protest.

"Oh but it is."

"Kevia knew."

"Yes and she's dead." That was it. August fell to his knees, screaming and clutching his head. Edmond knelt beside him, reaching out only for August to push him away.

"There's no use helping him. After all, there isn't much left of him to save anyway. I wouldn't waste your breath on that one."

Edmond glared at the man tearing down his friends with his carefully chosen words. Even behind the mask his anger could be seen.

"Ah Edmond, always so quick to go to the side of a fallen comrade, an honorable trait. Still as silent as ever I see." The evil smile on his face fell. "You'll never change."

Edmond did nothing but glare at him. It was unsettling for all gathered in the courtyard.

Bit by bit Atticus had torn down the trust placed on these newfound allies. Their secrets were coming to the surface and they were no laughing matter. It seemed as though they weren't always the people they were today. They hadn't always been kind and loyal. Their masks hid dark pasts and dangerous events.

"You are nothing but cowards, choosing to hide in a place where the dead are laid to rest. Your pasts will never be laid to rest like them. Seen any familiar faces? Do they remind you of the mistakes you've made? Do you still regret the past?" There was no sign of a smirk on his pale face. "You don't deserve second chances."

"You're wrong." Everyone was surprised to see Gwen stepping forward. She had gone through so much lately and it had changed her. "They may have done terrible things in the past and they may never forgive themselves for it but at least they know what they've done. Look at you. You're no better. In fact your worse."

"I know I'm worse. This is the way I am and I've embraced it. They wouldn't be so weak it they had as well."

"They aren't weak. Their darkness is in the past and they may still struggle but they stand along side us now, fighting to save lives. They have their second chance, do you?"

Atticus was speechless. It almost seemed as though the queen's words had gotten to him but then he smiled and began to laugh. The temperature around them dropped.

"Such moving words." He faked wiping tears from his eyes. "Words won't save you now, Gwen."

Gwen. He had called her Gwen. Not Queen or Guinevere but Gwen, like a friend. She didn't like him calling her that.

"Who are you?" She almost whispered.

"Wouldn't you like to know? I am…" He was cut off as a ball of energy came flying towards him narrowly missing him as he stepped to the side, laughing. "Almost got me there. Get the lady the distract me then hit me from behind."

His eyes fell on Edmond who stood with his right hand outstretched. He didn't look surprised that his attack hadn't worked.

"Do you really want to fight me again Ed?" He tilted his head to the side, as he looked at the man in the green cloak with the skull mask. "You remember what happened last time." He stuck out his tongue and pretended to cut it off. "We never got to finish that fight did we though the stakes this time are different. It isn't just your life at stake now."

The wind began to pick up. Atticus razed his right hand and the wind obeyed. It swirled and twisted until a small twister appeared next to him on the stone of the courtyard. It grew larger and seemed to be pulling up towards the sky. Then the wind died and the twister disappeared as quickly as it had come.

But the stones beside the man weren't empty. Two bodies lay there very still. They looked the same as when the group last saw them.

"That's not possible." Arthur breathed, but it was.

"Percival?"

"Kevia?"

"Oops. Did I say she was dead?" Atticus smirked.

They had watched them fall over the edge with their own eyes. How could they be here, and without a scratch? But they were so very still, their eyes not opening. Their chests still rose and fell, showing signs of life, but the breathing was slow and labored. They were just holding on.

"What have you done to them?" Gwaine shouted.

"I haven't done anything." Atticus shrugged. "You should really be thanking me. There were so very close to going splat on the floor of that pit."

Arthur took a step towards his knight but Atticus got in his way.

"Do you really think I would make it that easy? These two are my leverage." He shook his finger. "Your hearts are weak."

"What do you want?" Arthur asked.

"There isn't anything that I want." He shook his head. "I just love to see you dance, but the game is almost over. Such a shame but everything sooner or latter comes to an end, even your lives."

Their eyes were torn away from the mad man in front of them when an explosion came from a nearby building. They could hear the roars and hissing of monsters.

"Well I bought enough time." Atticus sighed. "The real party is about to begin and it's going to go out with a bang."

Atticus had just been stalling until the real threat arrived. The group covered their ears as a terrible screeching came from the skies.

"Echidna and her children will be so pleased." He laughed maniacally. "They do so love a good meal."

The group got into a circle, shoulder to shoulder, covering all angles with August in the center. He was in no condition to fight as he slowly looses his mind.

Would they be ready for whatever was coming their way or would this truly be their last stand?

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**So what do you think of these new revelations? Have your ideas of what will happen changed?**

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	13. You Did Once

**Here is the next chapter. It's the one you've all been waiting for, or is it?  
**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin, or any Greek myths, just my OCs.**

**Hope you enjoy.**

You Did Once

Yells came from the entrance to the castle. Knights appeared, ready to fight for their king but Arthur barely noticed.

Atticus' words had struck something inside Arthur. Just like that he had gotten a glimpse of the people Jade, Edmond, and August really were and he wasn't sure if he liked what he found. It seemed as though in their pasts they had all met Atticus at some point or other and they had made mistakes with dangerous consequences. Was it safe to trust these people? Did they have a choice?

The monsters were closing in but Arthur could barely keep his mind straight. Atticus was his enemy, was it possible he could have been lying? But none of them had denied what he said. So it was true.

Jade was some kind of killer who attacked her own home along side Atticus and Arthur could guess that it hadn't ended well. He could see that Jade wasn't proud of what had happened and she regretted it with her very soul, but that didn't change that she had done it and she could do it again.

It turns out that the beast inside August hadn't always been there and the fight was harder then Arthur had realized. Any moment he could loose control to the wolf and the rest of them would pay the price for his foolishness. His screams echoed off the stonewalls of the courtyard.

Then there was Edmond. Mystery still surrounded the tall man in the skull mask. Why had he gone to fight Atticus all by himself? What had happened between the two that made him make such a stupid mistake? He lost his tongue because of his actions and he would never speak again.

The events that had unfolded around them just seemed to get more and more confusing. Arthur looked past the others and towards where two bodies lay still on the cold stone. They had been so convinced that Percival and Kevia were dead yet here they were, so close. Arthur wanted to run to them and see if they were ok but he knew that it wouldn't be that simple. They were going to have to fight to get to them and the fight wasn't going to be easy.

Arthur was so lost in his thoughts that he almost didn't see the flash of green as a giant bird dived out of the sky. Its screeching was terrible and they all had to try their best not to drop everything and cover their ears. The giant bird just missed them as they all fell to the ground to escape its sharp talons. But the bird wasn't finished as it came around again and dived towards them. This time it came lower and seemed to be aiming for one of them in particular.

Arthur realized who it was too late. He tried to run and pull the boy out of the way but the bird was fast. It wrapped its claws around August's small body then flew into the sky once more, taking him with it.

"August!" Jade screamed as the bird got further and further away. She prepared to throw the spear in her hand but Edmond stopped her. He knew that she wouldn't be able to throw that far.

Their eyes were torn away from the bird carrying August away when a building close by shattered as a giant man with a bull's head crashed through it. A massive dog with three heads followed him. It growled and began to froth at the mouth when its eyes fell on its next victims.

The group just managed to roll out of the way as the dog pounced, splitting them up. Just then war cries came from the street leading into the courtyard. An army of ghostly looking men charged forward, swinging their swords and yelling insults. They were different from the skeletons and undead that they had fought before. These ones looked more blood thirsty and willing to kill.

The group was thrust into battle, doing their best to dodge swinging swords and being crushed by the dog's massive paws. Arthur whirled around in time to see the bull man swinging his large ax right for his head. He deflected it with his own sword but the bull man was strong. Arthur ducked and lunged out to stab the man in the ribs but missed. The bull man just managed to step to the side and away from Arthur's sword before it could wound him fatally.

Steam came from the bull's nostrils as he prepared to charge, his horns pointed towards the young king. Arthur side stepped the attack and held his sword above his head, bringing it down on the man's back. The creature howled with pain. Arthur tried to pull his sword from the beast's thick skin but it wouldn't budge. The bull man stood up straight, whirling around to attack the king but he wasn't there anymore. Arthur didn't let go of the hilt of his sword so he was pulled with it as the bull man turned around.

The force freed the sword and Arthur went flying, crashing hard on the ground. He groaned rolling over and barely missing the ax that lodged itself in the stone next to his head. Just like that he was on his feet and spinning to get behind the monster. He swung his sword and managed to hit the same point as before, deepening the wound.

The bull man gave up trying to retrieve his ax and turned to Arthur, fists razed. He swung, his fist connecting with the side Arthur's head, sending him once again to the ground. Arthur almost lost consciousness but the attack hadn't been a direct hit and there for didn't do too much damage but the world span before him and he was having trouble getting to his feet.

Then he felt someone grab his arm, pulling him to his feet. He looked to see a figure cloaked in green standing ready beside him. Edmond. He had no time to thank the man as the beast charged. They dived different ways to dodge the bull's sharp horns.

Edmond's hand glowed blue as he came up behind the bull man and struck his open wound. The creature yowled and sunk to his knees. He became very still as his wound began to glow like Edmond's hand had done. His back arched and he gave one last cry before collapsing.

"Thanks." Arthur came up beside the tall man who stared down at the body of the beast before it crumpled into dust that floated away on the wind. Arthur was startled and he stepped back.

"My baby!" The woman's screech was the first thing that alerted them to the new monster joining the fight. Echidna hadn't been far behind her children. She had arrived just in time to see the bull man disappear. Her eyes became like fire as she pushed her way through the crowd towards them.

Edmond and Arthur went back to back to face both the soldiers and their mother of all monsters. A shiver went up Arthur's spine and somehow the situation seemed nostalgic, as if he had done it before, back to back with someone else. There wasn't time to think on it as the soldiers attacked.

Somewhere during the fight Arthur lost sight of Edmond. Dread came over him as he quickly looked around, hoping to see the tall man somewhere in the crowd but he could to find him. He hoped he was all right.

Echidna looked locked in battle. Was she fighting Edmond or his knights?

Arthur wondered, why did he care? Atticus had said things to make them doubt in their newfound allies and he had reason to believe what he said was the truth, but then again this was Atticus. He may have been telling the truth but he must have had his reasons. He wouldn't have brought up the past if it didn't cause pain to the present.

Just as Arthur thought of the mad man his eyes fell on a man cloaked in black. Atticus. He wasn't too far away, still standing by the still bodies of Percival and Kevia. Immediately Arthur began to push his way through the crowd towards him, anger growing more and more inside him.

Atticus didn't notice Arthur coming up behind him, or at least it seemed that way, but when Arthur's sword fell on him he side stepped without even looking. Slowly he turned around to face the king, still standing between him and the bodies of his friends. A wicked smile had taken root on his face.

"I was wondering when you'd get here." Somehow his smile seemed to widen. "I've been waiting for this for a long time you know."

Arthur held up his sword, ready to fight. Atticus had no visible weapon but Arthur had learned that you don't need a sword to win a fight. The two of them stood in silence for a moment, waiting for the other to make the first move. Atticus sighed. This angered Arthur and he lunged, sword aimed for the man's heart.

Somehow Atticus got behind Arthur and rammed his fist into his back. Arthur cried out in pain, almost falling over, but he couldn't let that happen. He had to stand and fight, for his people and for Camelot itself. He fought for the very dream they held dear, the one he had once shared with a friend. Albion.

Arthur faked a right and dove left. His blade sliced through the surface of Atticus' right arm. It wasn't the kind of wound he had been intending to make but it made Atticus growl. He hadn't been expecting that, but it was only a flesh wound. Atticus quickly regained his composure. Using his surprise to his advantage, Arthur lunged again but Atticus was fast, catching the blade under his left arm, bringing his face very close to the kings. Arthur gulped, unable to move. He could almost see under Atticus' hood but not quite.

Before Atticus could do anything, Arthur let go of his sword and grabbed Atticus' arms, pushing up his sleeves. And there it was, on his right forearm. The symbol that the Mother Keeper had showed them was branded there. Atticus' noticed where Arthur was looking and quickly pulled away, covering the mark.

"So it is you." Arthur never felt so angry. "You're the one behind the attacks. You lied!"

"Oh, as if I've never lied before. I have been lying my whole life, even when I tell the truth I don't say everything so I'm still keeping secrets." Something on Atticus' face changed. "But I've always had good reason to keep my secrets."

"What do you mean?"

"Isn't it obvious. Look at you." He gestured to the sword that Arthur had picked up from the ground. "You are fighting a war against an enemy you don't even know. You call these creatures monsters but I only see one monster here Arthur Pendragon."

"I'm fighting to save the lives of my people."

"Fighting to save lives. Don't make me laugh." Atticus looked behind Arthur at the battle going on around them. "You are fighting to save your people but what about them. Monsters you say. They are called that because you chose to call them that. If you hadn't maybe they wouldn't be here. Maybe your people would still be alive and living in peace. This war is your fault Arthur. It was always your fault."

Arthur had a feeling that Atticus wasn't just talking about this war. "Have we met somewhere before?"

"Have we?" Atticus looked confused for a second, as if he didn't know the answer either. "Maybe on a few occasions I guess. I'm surprised you haven't seen more of me really."

"So I know you." Arthur concluded.

"You did once." Atticus got a far off look in his eyes but Arthur didn't notice because it was hidden in the darkness of his hood.

"Atticus." Arthur stood up straighter. "What are you fighting for?"

Atticus looked surprised at the question. "This is all I've ever known. This darkness." He looked down at his hands as if he could see the darkness running through his veins.

"Why?" Arthur didn't understand. "You must have a reason for fighting. What made you choose this road, Atticus?"

"You did." This answer made Arthur take a step back. "You are the reason I became this. Its your fault."

"What do you mean?"

"The darkness to your light." He sounded like he was quoting someone. "You are blind Arthur Pendragon. If only you could see. If only you could understand, but you never will. I learnt that the hard way, a long time ago."

"Could I have saved you?"

"What?"

"You say that it's my fault you became filled with darkness. Could I have saved you?"

It was an interesting question. "You can't save everyone, even the people closest to you. I was one of the ones you couldn't save. If you went back in time and tried again I don't think you could have changed anything because you wouldn't know what to change." Atticus shrugged. "So no. You couldn't have saved me because you are blind. You don't know what you have until its gone."

Arthur had heard this last statement a hundred times but it sounded different coming from Atticus. Something had changed in the man's voice. He no longer sounded mad like he had before. There was more then one side to this mysterious person.

"So that's why you attacked Camelot because of what I did to you." Arthur summed it all up.

"No, that's not quit right." Atticus rolled up his sleeve to reveal the branded mark again. "So that's what the old spider told you. Whoever had this mark branded on their arm is the one behind this. Are you sure that's what she said?"

"Of course I'm sur…" Then Arthur stopped. No, that's not what she said. The Mother Keeper had told them that whoever had the mark tattooed on their arm is behind this. It wasn't Atticus.

"Ah. Now you see. I didn't lie after all." Atticus smiled again.

"That mark is supposed to be tattooed on their arm, not branded." Arthur explained. "Do you know anyone like that?"

"Even if I did, why would I tell you?"

"So you don't know. How can you not know and still be fighting for them?"

"I'm not fighting for anyone." Atticus looked angry.

"Not even yourself?"

That silenced Atticus. He had never really thought about it before. If he wasn't fighting for anybody else then was he just fighting for himself. Something didn't seem quite right with that assessment. Why was he fighting?

But then Atticus smiled. "Enough talk. Your words cannot sway my position in this war. I like war. The battlefield is always filled with darkness. I can even sense yours. You feel guilt and you feel lost. You don't know whom to trust. My advise to you, don't trust anyone."

"Least of all you I suppose." Arthur lifted his sword. "You don't even know the meaning of trust."

Arthur yelled and ran at Atticus, sword razed for a deadly blow. He was running at Atticus but then suddenly the man wasn't there anymore. He seemed to move with inhuman speed, dodging Arthur's attack easily. With a few swift movements he had disarmed the king and had his arm pinned behind his back. He took a small dagger from his belt and put it to Arthur's back. That stopped Arthur from struggling.

"Look at them." Atticus made him look towards the battle going on around them. "We are many and you are few yet you still fight to save something that can no longer be saved. Is it courage or are you all fools?"

Arthur was silent as he watched others fighting. His knights, his people. He managed to catch glimpses of familiar faces. He saw Gwen fighting along side Gwaine against the giant dog with three heads while fighting off the ghostly soldiers at the same time. Arthur gasped but didn't dare scream as he saw one of the beast's giant paws almost crush his wife.

Atticus pulled on Arthur's arm, forcing him to move and look at another part of the fight. This time he could see Jade running across the top of the soldier's heads and backs as she chased after that giant bird that had taken August. It almost looked like her fiery mask had come alive, burning with the same rage that she felt in her heart. Her spear shone in her hand as she lashed out at the bird, just missing the leg with the claw that held August who had now fallen unconscious from the pain of fighting his own inner battle.

"Watch them fight Arthur." He could almost hear Atticus grinning. "Because this will be the last time you will see any of them alive. Feels good doesn't it, being the cause of someone else's suffering. They're fighting because you told them to Arthur. If they die, their blood will be on your hands."

"No." Arthur almost whispered. "The fight isn't over yet."

"Oh, but it soon will be, unfortunately you won't be around to see it." Atticus razed the dagger to Arthur's neck.

Arthur felt the cold metal touch his neck and, to Atticus' surprise, he relaxed. "Do your worst." Those were the last words he said before Atticus began to pull the dagger to slit his throat.

But the pain never came like Arthur expected. He felt the knife nick his skin, drawing a few drops of blood, but that was it. He didn't see the man in the green cloak come bursting out of the crowd, launching himself at Atticus and throwing him off of Arthur.

With the release of his arm, Arthur fell forward, landing on his hands and knees. He grabbed for his sword and looked up to see Edmond's skull mask looking down at him. He reached out his hand and helped the king to stand.

"You always seem to be saving me Edmond." Arthur coughed. "Someday I will return the favor."

Edmond didn't say anything, but that's not what concerned Arthur. Edmond wasn't looking at Arthur but at something behind him with wide, fearful eyes. Slowly Arthur turned around, afraid of what he might see. He followed Edmond's gaze and found it on Atticus.

Arthur caught his breath for Atticus' face was no longer hidden under his dark hood. His hood had fallen when Edmond tackled him.

"No." Arthur didn't want to believe what he was seeing. "No, you can't be. It's not true."

But it was for there, kneeling not too far away from them, was a familiar face. One that Arthur knew all too well. The man looked up to meet the king's eyes. Those eyes brought back so many memories because those eyes belonged to that one person.

They were Merlin's eyes.

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	14. Darkness to Your Light

**Here is a longer chapter for you guys this time because I might not be able to update for a while because of school.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin, any Greek myths, just my OCs and this storyline.**

**Thanks for following so far and for all the reviews. They've been great.**

**Hope you enjoy.**

Darkness to Your Light

Arthur was in shock to say the least. He didn't even notice that the knights had driven the monsters, including Echidna, from the courtyard and towards the edge of the city. Only a few remained and they were all looking in the same direction. They looked towards the man kneeling on the ground, staring up at the king. There was silence all around them.

He looked the same. He still had the same raven hair and pale skin. The only thing different was that he had a wicked scar running along the bottom of his face on the right side.

Edmond was standing next to the king. Gwen and Gwaine came a little closer but were still too shocked to understand what had happened. Jade was off chasing the giant bird that still had August in its claws.

Arthur felt stupid. He had known from the beginning that there was something familiar about the man who called himself Atticus but he had never put the pieces together. Atticus had called the queen Gwen as if he knew her, like a friend would. They should have known but none of that mattered now because here was Merlin, their old friend, right in front of them.

But there would be no happy reunion. Merlin didn't smile and say, "I'm back." Instead he just knelt there, hatred written on his face for the king who stood before him looking astonished. Slowly he rose to his feet, brushing himself off.

"I had hoped to keep this little detail from coming out." He admitted. "But I guess I can't help it now. I am curious to know what is going through your mind right now. I can see that you're shocked. Surprised are we that your best friend turned out to be a psychopath? Or is it because I'm supposed to be dead? Maybe it's both."

"How?" Arthur tried to sum up his confusion. "How are you here?"

"Simple, because I am." It wasn't really an answer. "You don't need to know the details from me. You'll find out soon enough."

"But you died." Arthur felt like his head was going to explode.

"Yes, I did. Tragic wasn't it." A cruel smile wormed its way onto Atticus, or Merlin's face. "Touching really how you all cried for a dying man. As you once said to me Arthur, no man is worth your tears."

Arthur had been alone with Merlin when he had said that to him. So this really was his old friend and not just an illusion. Arthur didn't know if this was good news or bad.

"Was it all fake? Did you stage your death? If not then why didn't you come back to us?" Arthur felt hurt and angry. "We mourned you and you let us grieve even though you were still alive."

"I didn't make you grieve my death did I?" The smile on his face vanished. "It wasn't my fault I died."

"But you survived." So his death hadn't been staged. "You're here now, but we saw you down in the tomb."

"Really?" This was a surprise to him. "Someone was trying to lead you astray. I'm not the only one who's been lying to you."

"So you survived and never told us." Arthur summed it all up but one thing still didn't make sense. "What happened? What made you change and become this?"

"Now we're getting to the interesting questions." He smiled again. "Everyone changes. You've changed. I've changed and I've already told you why I chose this road. Were you not listening?"

"You said it was my fault. Why?" Arthur looked his friend in the eye hoping to find some traces of the man he once knew. "What did I do?"

Atticus, or Merlin, lowered his head, his smile fading once more. He got a sad look in his eye as if he was remembering. "You didn't save me." He almost whispered.

"What?" Arthur didn't understand, none of them did.

"I saved you so many times. I put my life on the line for you more times then I can count or remember." His voice cracked slightly in anguish as he explained. "You'd think after all I did I deserved to be saved, but you let me die."

"You did deserve to be saved." Gwen stepped forward. "But there was nothing we could do. We never wanted you to die."

"Yeah, well it happened. I died and you all just watched." He sounded so angry. "To think I used to call you my friends. I made myself a promise that day. I swore that I would never forgive you. I would show you how it felt to be dying and have no one to try and save you."

"Nothing good ever came from revenge." Arthur knew that from personal experience. "I thought you of all people would know that. I never thought you would fall into darkness."

"Trying to make me feel guilty." He almost laughed. "I learned what a fool I had been a year ago. Actually a year ago today."

"Today?" Arthur asked.

"A year ago today was the day you died." Gwaine finally spoke up. "We know. We remember, but do you?"

"Of course I remember. I was the one dying." Atticus, or Merlin, narrowed his eyes at the knight.

"No you weren't." Gwaine seemed calm. Everyone had expected him to get angry. "In those last moments you weren't there. It wasn't you."

"Gwaine what are you talking about?" Arthur looked quizzically at the knight. He wasn't making any sense. This was Merlin. So how could Merlin not have been at his own death? He looked back at the man who looked like his friend and saw him smirk.

"You're smarter then I gave you credit for Sir Gwaine." He stood up straighter. "I'm not saying that you're right. Please, enlighten the rest of us."

Gwaine walked forward until he was standing next to Arthur and Edmond. "I know what Merlin was like. He was kind and he never asked to be thanked for the things he had done. Not once did he complain like you or ask for anything in return. He may have fallen a few times but he always got back up." He looked Atticus right in the eye. "You do remind me of him though. You are similar but there's something off about you. Something not quite right."

"Wonderful assessment." Atticus clapped his hands together slowly. "I like that. I'm not quite right am I. Not quite Merlin. Not quite anything at all really."

"What are you, a copy then?" Arthur was trying to put everything right in his head.

"No." He tilted his head, his gaze drifting over to the king. "I'm not any of the strange ideas running around in your head. I'm Merlin, but then again I'm not."

"You really did die that day didn't you?" Gwen warily came to stand near the others with tears in her eyes.

"No, you said you survived." Arthur wasn't willing to admit that his friend really was dead after seeing him here.

"You said I survived." Atticus corrected. "I didn't. You're right Gwen. I really did die that day on the battlefield."

"Can someone please tell me what's going on?" Arthur felt like he was the only one who didn't understand what was happening.

"Ask me." Atticus smiled.

"Ask you what?"

"Ask me how I got this scar?" He ran the back of his finger along the long scar on his face.

"Alright, I'll play along. How did you get that scar?"

"You can thank your friend over there." He nodded his head towards the person standing next to Arthur. "Eddy gave me this and I cut out his tongue."

"What does that have to do with this?"

"Really Arthur. Put the pieces together. Why would Edmond be so desperate to fight me? He is literally shaking with how much he wants to charge me. Why?"

"I don't know, because you did something to him and now he wants revenge."

"No." Atticus answered simply. "Do you wonder how I knew? How could I possibly have known all of their secrets? I've only actually met two of them. I couldn't have known, but Edmond did. He always knew."

"You betrayed them?" Arthur looked to Edmond. That's when he noticed how fidgety he was. His hands were clenched into fists and he seemed barely able to control himself.

"Oh don't blame him. He didn't mean for me to find out but the mind is a strange thing." Atticus' words were as smooth as silk, like he was building a deadly web with his words. "It has so many weaknesses. It's hard to hide your thoughts especially from yourself."

Everyone's eyes widened as they realized what he meant. Gwaine had seen the signs but he hadn't been sure. Now he was.

"Its time to drop the act. Time to take off your mask and take your final bow. The shows over brother." Atticus was grinning.

Edmond lowered his head. First he removed his hood, revealing more of his raven hair. Then he slid off the cracked skull mask. He didn't want to look up, didn't want to see the looks on their faces. It would be too much.

"Do you get it now? Do you understand why I seem so off?" Atticus put his hands to the sky as if in triumph. "Its because I'm not complete. I'm not all Merlin, only half. Edmond here is the missing piece to the puzzle."

Edmond finally found the courage to look up but there was no shame in his blue eyes like before. He stood strong. He gave Atticus such a deathly look that shivers went up their spins, but Atticus didn't seem to be affected. He didn't look in the least bit concerned.

"Your friend Merlin died a year ago. That's when Edmond and I were born. Edmond has accepted the way it all ended but I haven't. That's where we're different." Edmond came forward to stand protectively in front of the others. "Darkness to your light, hatred to your love. We are opposites but not complete without the other. When Merlin was stabbed by his own shadow his soul split into two. His good side." He gestured to Edmond. "And his bad."

Arthur wanted to charge the man that wore his friend's familiar face but Edmond put out his arm to stop him. He gave the group behind him one look and they understood. This fight was his and his alone. They mustn't interfere.

"We can't let you do this on your own." Gwaine argued.

"Edmond always fights alone." Atticus explained. "He can protect you more this way and you'd just get in the way." The connection between their minds was scary but the last bit sounded more like Atticus. "You are alone in this fight Edmond. Are you sure you can do it?"

Atticus began to laugh. It echoed off the walls around them, making it even more menacing.

"But he isn't alone." Someone spoke. Atticus stopped laughing and followed the sound of the voice.

"We're all here behind him." Another said and two more people joined the group standing behind Edmond.

"Percival! Kevia!" They were so relieved. Percival stood tall but Kevia clutched her stomach. She must have broken, or at least cracked some ribs when the Mother Keeper hit her.

"How could you both be awake?" Atticus looked angry. "Only I had the power to wake you."

"You, and another." Kevia looked at Edmond. "You both share the same power. You are both a part of Merlin. How could you not have realized your mistake?"

"No!" Atticus lunged at her but Edmond stepped between them, catching his arm. "You wanna play Eddy? Then lets play." He jumped back and away from his other half. With a few short words he summoned a pillar of fire, sending it flying towards Edmond.

Without a word, Edmond made a diagonal gesture with his right hand, dissipating the pillar of fire. Atticus growled. He waved his arms in a horizontal line in front of him. Water from the well close by burst upward and did as Atticus demanded. He spoke under his breath, freezing the water into hundreds of deadly spears.

"Lets see you undo this spell without your tongue." He mocked, sending the ice spears flying towards them.

The others backed away but Edmond didn't flinch. He stared intently at the oncoming attack. It was the smallest of movements. All he did was tilt his head to the side and the ice turned back to water, splashing down between them.

"How?" Atticus' eyes were wide. You could almost see little bits of fear if they weren't tinted with his darkness. "How did you do it without speaking a single spell?"

"He's had time to practice." Kevia explained, smiling. "It seems you aren't so similar after all."

"This isn't over." Atticus roared. Fire came flying out of his mouth, forcing Edmond and the others to dive out of the way. "We are dragon lords. So lets fight like dragons." He roared again, this time it sounded so close to a dragon's.

Edmond got back on his feet and removed his cloak, throwing it to the wet ground. Atticus did the same. He roared once more and this time Edmond answered his call. He may not have had a tongue but the natural roar of the dragon still came bursting from his lungs. It wasn't as loud as Atticus'.

Then they both began to change. Atticus arched his back as Edmond fell to his knees. Two large dragon's wings emerged from their backs to the surprise of all. Atticus yelled in pain as they pushed through the skin of his back. Edmond was shaking violently but he made no sound.

Atticus was the first to stand straight, his long white wings extended on either side of him. When he opened his eyes they too had changed. They now resembled those of a dragon's with their diamond pupils. His hands had grown long talons and he was looking at them like they were meat. He growled, showing his long fangs.

Edmond shakily got to his feet. His long red dragon's wings stretched out magnificently on either side of him. He bore the same resemblances as Atticus, except for the fangs.

It was Edmond who lunged first. His feet lifted off the ground as he ran full on into Atticus, pulling him into the sky and away from the others. They followed their evenly matched fight until they disappeared over the tops of the buildings. Thunder cracked in the sky and lightning streaked it with a brilliant white. All they could make out from the battle was their roars but they couldn't decipher whose was whose.

Then they saw one of them coming back, landing hard on the stones of the courtyard, but it wasn't Edmond. Atticus looked at them, fury written in his eyes. He took a step towards him but a flash of red came hurtling out of the sky, tackling Atticus and throwing him into a nearby wall. Atticus almost went right through the wall, but still made a large indent.

Edmond took Atticus by the neck, pinning him there. He was breathing heavily and his eyes spoke the need to kill.

"Edmond stop!" Kevia ran toward him, stopping only a few feet away. "You're not like him."

Atticus laughed and Edmond tightened his grip around his neck, putting an end to his laughter.

"Don't do this." Kevia took another step closer. "Please." Her words were calm and kind. They soothed the anger taking over inside Edmond and he released Atticus, turning away.

"Fool." Atticus croaked out when he could breath again. "You're weak. You didn't even have the guts to finish me off."

Edmond took a deep breath and turned back, grabbing Atticus by the arm. A brilliant light appeared around them. Atticus was surrounded by darkness and Edmond by light but then they began to mix together.

"What are you doing?" Atticus tried to pull away but Edmond's grip was firm and unbreakable. "Let go! Are you out of your mind? We'll both die."

But Edmond didn't let go as the darkness mixed with the light. He looked back at the others one last time, silently wishing that Jade was there among them. He would have liked to say goodbye to August and her, but mostly her. In those last moments he thought of the time they had spent together and the happy moments in this short life of his. He wouldn't really be gone but he wouldn't be Edmond anymore. A single tear made its way down his cheek.

Suddenly they exploded, their wings shattering. Kevia was sent flying but Percival caught her this time before she hit the ground. They blinked the spots out of their eyes and looked to see what had happened.

Where Edmond and Atticus had once been standing only one man stood now. He was tall and wore a long dark blue coat with a hood that he wore over his head. He held a twisted wooden staff at his side. When he turned to face them there were tears in his eyes but he quickly wiped them away.

"I'm back." The real Merlin smiled at them.

Their reunion was delayed as the wretched screech of a bird could be heard approaching, with one of their friends in hot pursuit.

**Thanks for reading and please REVIEW! **

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	15. Save You

**Got this done faster then I thought I would. Sorry it's a bit long but I'm quite happy with how it came out.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin, any Greek myths, just my OCs and this storyline.**

**Thanks for all the brilliant reviews and I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

Save You

The large green bird came soaring over the tops of the buildings, shrieking as it went. The feathers of its tail were on fire and it was desperately trying to find a way to put them out. In its panic August almost slipped from its claws but Merlin razed his staff into the air and both the bird and August were engulfed in some kind of blue light, bringing them safely down to the ground in front of the group.

As soon as the blue light disappeared Merlin twirled his staff and chains appeared around the gigantic bird, pinning it to the ground. A woman in a fiery mask bolted into the courtyard, her spear still in hand. Her eyes fell on the bird in chains then to the man in the long coat standing next to it. She almost dropped her spear when she saw his face.

"Edmond?" She asked warily.

Merlin got a sad look in his eye and he lowered his head. He couldn't bear looking her in the eye and telling her what had happened, but his actions spoke louder then words ever could.

"No." She whispered. Her spear clattered to the ground. She knew that the man standing in front of her was not Atticus but he wasn't Edmond either.

"He's gone." She sobbed. "I didn't even get to say goodbye."

"I'm sorry." That's all Merlin could get out. He had all the memories inside his head, from both of them. He remembered everything that had happened to them over the past year and he remembered Jade. He would always remember Jade but he wasn't Edmond anymore.

"Well there's nothing I can do about it now." She wiped the tears from her eyes and picked up her spear.

"Jade." Kevia tried to comfort her though she was barely managing herself.

"It's fine." Jade brushed her away and went over to the bird that was struggling to be free of its chains. Merlin went to help her and together they managed to pull August from the bird's clutches. Carefully they rested him on the ground.

Kevia rushed over and checked for a pulse. They all breathed a sigh of relief when she nodded. She stroked his hooded head. "You're safe."

Merlin was the first to stand. He looked in the direction the sound of fighting and the roars of monsters were coming from. Jade came to stand beside him. Leaving Kevia with August. The others came to see how August was doing.

"What do we do now?" Jade asked him. Merlin looked deep in concentration. He squinted at something in the distance. "What do you see?"

His eyes widened. "Get down!" He pulled Jade to the ground. A spear came whizzing by, narrowly missing her head.

A fog entered the courtyard and hissing could be heard. The fog surrounded them. Nothing could be seen through this thick mist. Kevia tightened her grip on the still unconscious August. She wasn't going to let anyone harm him ever again. They all formed a circle but nothing could be seen on all sides.

Suddenly a snake tail came lashing out of the fog, wrapping itself around Arthur's leg, pulling him down and toward the wall of fog. Gwaine grabbed him under the arms and tried to anchor them. The hissing came closer. Arthur felt like he was going to be torn in half.

"Come out and face us!" Percival yelled into the mist. "Don't hide you coward."

"Why don't you come in here and face me, boy." Someone hissed from within the wall of fog.

Merlin tried to hear from where the voice had come. A booming laugh echoed all around them, making it impossible to locate the source. "I see Atticus failed. Must admit I didn't expect him to get this far."

Merlin listened and searched. There it was. He made a whipping movement with his staff at the wall of fog and a long line of blue magic shot out and into the mist. It made a thumping sound as if it had hit something flabby. Something screeched and a dark form came through the mist toward them. A woman's head was the first thing they saw break through the wall.

"How dare you!" She screamed.

"Gotcha." Merlin smirked, launching his magical whip again. This time it wrapped around her neck. He pulled down, forcing her to do the same. The sudden impact of hitting the ground stunned her and they managed to pull Arthur free.

Echidna was now in full view. She was monstrous as she picked herself off the ground, murder written in her eyes, but it was mixed with fear and sadness. Kevia was standing closest to her and only she saw the tears streaming down the face of the mother of monsters. Why did she weep?

"You will pay for what you've done to us." She cried. "My children are dead because of you. I'll kill you all!"

Revenge drove her as she swiped with long pointed fingers at the group bellow. She caught Gwen's side, sending her tumbling to the ground. Arthur scrambled to get to her but she was already getting back on her feet. She cringed in pain and held her sword toward the beast. Echidna swiped again but this time the queen was ready. She ducked just in time with her blade in the air. Echidna howled with pain as one of her elegant fingers fell from her hand to the ground where it disappeared into ash.

Her snakes lashed out at them, splitting them up as they tried their best to evade them. One of the snakes caught Jade by the arm, pulling her violently forward onto the ground. Echidna lowered herself down for the kill but Merlin got in her way, waving his staff at her. She hissed and backed away. She knew not to underestimate his magic.

The other snake was going after Gwaine from behind but Arthur swung his sword at it, almost chopping off its head. Echidna roared with rage and swept her arms through the mist, forcing it to obey her. It enveloped them all. Gwaine and Arthur stayed close together but they couldn't see the others.

A dark figure passed by them. Arthur reached out and grabbed them by the arm. It was her curly brown hair that gave her away. Gwen yelped as Arthur pulled her in. He wrapped his arms around her, so glad that he knew she was safe. Together they moved slowly through the fog, barely able to see a foot in front of them.

Arthur's head jerked to the right as someone screamed in the distance and the sound of battle could be heard. As fast as they could, without loosing each other, they approached the fight. Fire cut through the fog, as they got closer. Someone was trying to disperse it.

They could see the dark shadow of Echidna looming over some other smaller beings. A body came hurling through the thick mist but they couldn't tell whom it was.

"Gwen wait!" Arthur called after her as she broke away from them and hurried towards the still form. Arthur and Gwaine continued but Arthur kept looking back.

The group in front of them, made up of Merlin, Percival, and Jade, was struggling. Echidna's wild swings were unpredictable. They had to keep on their toes or they'd be crushed. One came so close to Percival's head that if it had met its mark his skull would have been shattered. Jade was forced to jump in order to avoid being taken out at the feet by one of Echidna's snakes.

Merlin casted spells this way and that, but he was tiring. He wouldn't be able to keep this up for long. He created a bubble around Percival with his spear and quickly pulled him out of the way of her sharp claw like hands. The spell left him vulnerable and Echidna took her advantage. She swooped in close to grab him and she would have succeeded if something didn't come bursting out of the wall of fire, head butting her to the side.

She gasped and whirled around to strike the poor creature down but its reaction was quicker then hers as the wolf attacked again. This time he managed to get his fangs wrapped firmly around her right arm. She shook her arm up and down but he would not let go.

"Get off me you stupid animal." She seethed. The wolf dug his fangs deeper into the flesh of her arm, making her cry out.

"August!" Jade yelled as Echidna grabbed the wolf with her free hand and threw him to the ground. He managed to land on his feet but he stumbled slightly to the side. Jade ran to pull him back but he had already leapt back into the fight.

Echidna bared her teeth at him and he did the same in response. They circled each other, watching each other's every movement to see who would strike first. Echidna slithered across the ground, hissed, then lunged like one of her snakes at August, claws outstretched.

August dodged her attack and jumped onto her back. He took a handful of her hair in his mouth and pulled. She screamed and tried to grab him off her back.

The others watched the fight from the sidelines in awe. They looked for openings to help him but found none as they slowly circled the two fighting beasts. Merlin summoned a ball of fire with his staff and hurled it at Echidna so it wouldn't hit August and stop her attempts to grab him, but it was too late.

Echidna dug her sharp nails into his fur and hurled him at the ground. He didn't land on his feet this time. When he hit the ground with a deafening thud he bounced once and slid a good distance away from the mother of monsters.

"No!" Jade yelled and threw her spear at Echidna. It lodged fast in her right shoulder, drawing green blood. Echidna wailed and tried to pull it out but only ended up snapping it in half with the stone spearhead still imbedded deep in her skin. She lashed out with her snakes but Percival was ready this time.

Percival caught one of the snakes in a death grip under his arm. Jade picked up a sword from nearby and approached, razing the sword above her head. She let the blade fall, cutting the serpent right in half. Echidna fell sideways, writhing in pain as green blood oozed from her open wound. But the loss of her leg didn't slow her down. She dragged herself across the ground with all her might.

Unfortunately Arthur and Gwaine chose that time to come charging to the rescue. Echidna sniffed the air and cackled. "I smell courage and strength. Oh I can almost taste them." She pulled herself towards them.

They backed away, swords razed. "Stay back." Arthur warned. But she didn't stop.

"She's lost her mind." A voice said as two figures came limping through the fog. Gwen had her arm under Kevia's shoulder as she supported her.

"She's gone mad with the loss of her children." Kevia explained. "They were the one thing she truly loved and now they're gone. Her mind is filled with revenge now. Revenge and hunger." It was as if she could read the beast's mind.

"Let me feast on your souls!" Echidna cackled and coughed. A line of green blood appeared at the edge of her mouth. Her hair was all tangled and hung loose around her face. If Arthur had ever imagined what a psychopath would look like it would be this. She didn't seem to notice any of the pain she must have been feeling. She was numb inside now.

"I can walk on my own from here." Kevia pulled away from Gwen.

"But…"

"It's alright." She smiled at her reassuringly and limped over to where Echidna was still dragging herself across the courtyard.

"Kevia, what are you doing?" Arthur went to stop her but one look from her stopped him. There was no fear in her eyes, but she looked sad. The look in her eyes made Arthur's heart want to break.

Echidna didn't notice her until she had squatted down right in front of her, cutting her off from Arthur and Gwaine. She hissed at the young girl in the bird's mask.

"Get out of my way." She commanded, but Kevia didn't budge.

"Hello Echidna." Kevia smiled down at her. "My name is Kevia."

"Why should I care?" She spat.

"Everything is going to be alright Echidna." Her words were so soothing that everyone around her felt themselves relax, but Echidna was still fighting it.

"How could you possibly know?" She denied the girl's words. Echidna looked so small there in front of Kevia.

"Echidna, look at me." Echidna found herself looking up into Kevia's eyes. "I want to help you, but you have to let me." She reached down to lay her hand on the woman's head.

"Don't touch me!" Echidna yelled and struck out with her four-fingered hand. Her nails cut through the skin on Kevia's left cheek, pushing her face to the side and leaving behind three long bloody scratches. Kevia didn't scream. She didn't seem to be affected by it at all, but she stopped smiling.

Echidna looked shocked for a moment at what she had done. Regret crossed her face but she quickly shook it away. Kevia slowly looked back to her, clearly feeling pain in her neck as she moved it.

"You are forgiven." That was the first thing she said.

"What?" Echidna gasped. "What did you say?"

"You are, and always will be, forgiven." A shadow of her former smile returned to her face.

"I don't understand." The mother of monsters was shocked.

"I don't blame you." The girl in the bird's mask had soft eyes, calming the madness inside the monster in front of her. "I want you to know that."

Tears came to Echidna's eyes. The girl who spoke so sweetly to her was kind but there was sadness hidden deep within. Some of that sadness was for her. No one had ever felt this way for her. She knew that when she was gone this girl would mourn her. Why?

"I'm dying." Echidna said softly.

"I know." Kevia's eyes lowered for a moment, then she looked back up. "You're in pain. Do you want me to take it away?"

"Please." Echidna didn't want to die in pain and Kevia was willing to be merciful. The mother of monsters almost smiled then. Would she see her children again?

"You will." Echidna looked up startled at the girl's words. It was as if she could see inside her mind. "You'll take the white ships and they will carry you home."

Echidna could feel herself slowly weakening. Kevia went down to her knees and came closer to the dying monster.

"It's time. They're waiting for you." She raised her hand.

"Thank you." Echidna breathed her last words. "Thank you."

Then Kevia touched her. It was a gentle movement as she placed her finger to Echidna's forehead. Echidna sighed and smiled as she left this world in peace. The fog faded as she did. Her body turned to ash under Kevia's touch and the wind carried her away to the white ships that would take her to her resting place. Kevia watched them go and she mourned.

"You gave her mercy." Arthur walked over to her and helped her to her feet. "How did you do that with just one touch?"

"I pitied her." Kevia didn't answer his question. "No one deserves to die in such pain. Not even her. She lost her family. She was alone but she didn't die believing that."

"August?" Jade had gone over to where the boy had fallen. He had turned back to his human form. She shook him gently but he did not wake. "August? August!"

Kevia pulled away from Arthur and ran as well as she could toward him. She dropped down by his side and put her head to his chest. Her breath caught in her throat.

"His heart has stopped." She announced. Everyone else came over and looked down at his still form. Had they gotten this far only to lose one of their friends?

"He lost." Jade cried. "It was too much for him. He fought so hard against the beast inside him but it was too much for his heart."

"We can still save him." Merlin lightly pushed her out of the way and rubbed his hands together. Sparks jumped between his palms. Then he touched them to August's chest, sending the shock to his heart. "I might be able to restart his heart."

Merlin tried several more times but there was no effect. His heart was as still as ever.

"No!" Kevia yelled and started doing compressions on his chest. "Breathe. Come on August. Breathe!"

"Kevia stop." Gwen put her arms around the girl and pulled her away. She struggled but the embrace was strong yet gentle. She could not break free.

"What if I tried?" Something changed in Jade's eyes. It was almost as if they deepened in colour and became a darker shade of green.

"Are you sure you can handle it?" Merlin asked.

"Yes." She said confidently. She stood up. Then she began to change. It was as if she was splitting in half. Someone stepped out of her but she didn't look like Jade.

This new girl had wavy green hair that she had pulled back into a ponytail, her bangs/fringe curled over her forehead. Her neck looked like the stem of a plant and there were leaves clinging to the bottom of her face that curved around and attached to her neck. She wore a strange short dress that looked to be made out of large leaves. Under her dress she wore olive green pants made out of wool like the long sleeves of her dress. Her feet were bare and her ears were pointy.

Her face was pale white. She took in a deep breath and opened her eyes. They weren't human eyes but bug eyes. Everyone, except Kevia and Merlin, looked at her in shock.

"Who are you?" Percival was the first to voice the question.

She looked at him with her strange eyes. "I'm Jade."

Everyone looked to the body she had just vacated that was picking itself off the ground. The woman looked at Percival as well. "I am not Jade."

"But…" Arthur was dumbfounded at this revelation. "Then… Who are you?"

The woman lowered her hood and removed her fiery mask. "Remember me?"

"Morgana." Arthur breathed her name.

"We don't have anytime for questions." Jade knelt down by August's side again. "I only have one shot at this."

"At what?" Gwaine asked.

"She's going to try and pull him back from the edge." Morgana explained.

They watched as Jade put her hands on either side of August's head. She closed her eyes and concentrated. She pushed through his weak defenses and searched for his fading light and the darkness that surrounded it.

Her eyes shot open and she plunged her hand into his chest. It passed through easily and she grabbed for what she had found and pulled back. She had a darkness writhing in her grip. Before it could escape she sucked it in through her mouth. For a moment her eyes went black and she froze.

"Jade?" Morgana asked warily. Jade gasped and fell to the side where Morgana caught her. At the same time August gasped and coughed. He spluttered back to life.

Gwen released Kevia who enveloped August in a tight hug. "Don't you ever scare me like that again."

"How long was I gone?" He asked, looking at everyone's relieved faces.

"Too long." Kevia kissed him on the head. "Far too long."

At the sight of him awake and breathing, everyone crowded around him to see if he was real and welcomed him back from the dead.

Kevia let got of August and let everyone else get closer. The sight made her smile but something caught her eye. A small piece of fabric was lying on the ground close by. Curious, she ventured over and scooped it up out of the water that still covered the ground. She turned it over in her hands to see the mark still visible on the other side. It was three lighting bolts that all met in the middle.

"Arthur?" The king turned around at the mention of his name. "What is this?"

"The Mother Keeper gave us that. It must have fallen out of my pocket. She said that whoever had that mark tattooed on their arm was the one behind it all." He explained. "We still haven't found them yet." He turned back to the others, leaving Kevia to ponder the curious mark.

Her breath caught in her throat and the piece of fabric slipped from her fingers, slowly floating back to the ground. With a shaking hand she rolled up the sleeve on her right arm and there it was, inked in black. She looked back at the others who hadn't noticed her absence yet.

Then she looked away.

"It's me."

**Thanks for reading and please REVIEW!**

**Please read my other story "I Will Never Forget" and REVIEW it so I know what you think. I really need your help with it.**

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**See you next time.**


	16. The Ones Who Rememberd

**Here's the last chapter. I put it off because I didn't want to end it yet. I'm rather sad that its over.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin, or any Greek myth, just my OCs and this storyline.**

**Hope you enjoy.**

The Ones Who Remembered

The group was still crowded around August, not taking any notice of Kevia's absence. Arthur turned to Morgana then, voicing the question he had wanted to ask since she had split from Jade.

"What happened Morgana?" He asked, drawing his sister's attention. "How are you here?"

"I almost died saving you." She remembered.

"We thought you had died."

"I was lucky. Jade found me and to save me we became one. Her power slowly healed me from the inside." She explained.

"Why didn't you come back to us?" He asked rather hurt.

"I couldn't. I was too weak and Jade suggested we go the Mother Keeper to ask for shelter. Jade's the last of her kind and she was going there to begin with. That's when I met the others."

"But we saw both of your bodies down in the tomb."

"Illusions are tricky things." Morgana smirked.

"Did you know Edmond was Merlin?"

"Not right away." She admitted. "But he wasn't Merlin, not really."

Suddenly Arthur reached out and pulled Morgana by the arm, catching her by surprise. He grabbed Merlin's arm as well, pulling them to their feet. Merlin pulled Gwen in as well as Arthur forced them into a large hug.

"We missed you." Arthur felt like he was about to cry, this reunion had been put off for far too long.

"We missed you too." Morgana cried.

"The four of us together again." Merlin pointed out.

"It's always been the four of us." Gwen reminisced.

"It will always be the four of us." Arthur corrected and they all laughed, tears in their eyes.

But then Merlin stopped laughing, noticing something behind them. They broke away and followed his gaze. He was looking at Kevia, standing alone in the middle of the courtyard. Her eyes were wide and it looked like she was in shock, holding onto her right sleeve tightly.

"Kevia?" Arthur took a step towards her. Her head shot up and she looked scared. The others had noticed as well and came to stand next to him.

"Kev, what's wrong?" August didn't like seeing Kevia this way.

"I…" She started then turned abruptly, fleeing the courtyard.

"Kevia wait!" Jade called, running after her with the others close behind. "It isn't safe out there."

But Kevia didn't stop. She ran, limping slightly, as fast as she could away from the others. She ran past all of the wreckage, all of the fire that still burned. The sight was too much; she ran faster and began to sob. Tears poured down her face as she fled, unable to take the sight, the regret.

They could hear the roars and screeches of the monsters in the distance as the fight continued. Kevia ran away from it all, dodging the ruble as best she could. The gate of Camelot was just ahead. She ran for it but pain pulsed through her ribs and she was forced to stop, gasping for air. The others caught up with her easily.

"Why did you run?" Morgana was the first to speak.

Slowly Kevia turned to face them. "It's me." She whispered.

"What?" They could not hear her.

"It's me!" She shouted at them, roughly pulling her right sleeve up to reveal the mark. "I'm the one you want. I'm the one you're after."

They were shocked into silence, taking in the dark mark inked into her skin. It was an angry mark, one of hatred, rage, and betrayal. The mark had not been placed there willingly. Her arm had been forced down and they held her as they penned it onto her arm to forever mark her as what she really was, a monster. Wherever she went she would always be an outsider. It told people that she was never to be forgiven for what she had done. Never to be loved, never to know the meaning of family or friendship. It was her punishment, her curse. Even if others could not see it she would always know it was there.

Now she showed it to people she had come to care for. She revealed her true self, what lay under the mask she wore. It was her dark past, the one she had tried to hide but had come back to haunt her in the end. She couldn't run anymore.

"Why?" Arthur was the first to recover. "Why did you do this to us?" He was angry and hurt. They all were.

"We trusted you." Gwaine finally let the emotions he had been bottling up for the past year out. "We cared about you and all this time you've been stabbing us in the back."

"You don't understand…" Kevia tried to explain but she was cut off.

"What?" Morgana yelled. "What don't we understand because it all seems pretty clear?"

The tears disappeared from Kevia's eyes and her face darkened. "You're just like the rest of them." She accused. "Never giving me a chance, never listening to me. They never gave me a chance to tell them the truth back then so they marked me without ever knowing what really happened. Though I guess I deserved it."

"This has happened before." Jade concluded. "That night you spoke of when the Mother Keeper found you. This is what you had done."

"Yes. That's what happened. Ever since I was born I've been able to control these creatures. I could make them do whatever I wanted." Kevia burst with anger. "I could usually control it but my emotions got out of hand that night in the snow. They had always looked down on me. The orphan. Never believing I could do anything, that I was good enough to even live in this world. That night was the last straw. I couldn't take it anymore and I got so angry, my magic responded and the creatures attacked. I was unable to stop it."

"It was no reason to hurt them." Morgana spoke from experience.

"They found out pretty quickly that I was the one behind it. Faster then you." She almost spoke that as if it were an insult. "They dragged me far away from the town so that my magic was out of reach and the monsters left but they weren't going to let me go that easily. They thought it would be too merciful for them to kill me quickly so they drew this mark on my skin and stabbed me, leaving me there to wander in the snow, slowly bleeding to death. They should have killed me when they had the chance."

"Why did you do it again?" Jade didn't understand. "If it was so terrible the first time then why do it again?"

"Because I'm a monster!" She raged. "The magic that is inside me is dark and it will not be tamed. It has a mind of its own and it wanted to be free. I felt it that night when you found me at the pit, Jade. I could feel it taking control. You should have let me jump."

"You lost control." Percival realized.

"My magic had gotten a taste of blood and it wanted more. I could only keep it at bay for so long before its thirst would become too strong for me to quench with my own pain." Kevia told them. "I should never have let the Mother Keeper bring me here. It was a mistake. I'm a mistake. I should never have existed in the first place."

She cried out and her hands flew to the sides of her head. Arthur drew his sword and pointed at her. Kevia looked at the blade with wide eyes, then at Arthur.

"I thought if I left, like last time, they would leave too. But it isn't going to be that simple this time is it? That's what she told you, the Mother Keeper. I must not be allowed to live or Camelot will fall and Albion will never come to be. If I live you're destinies will be destroyed."

Arthur tightened his grip on the hilt of his sword. "She said there was no other way. It had to be done this way or the monsters will keep coming."

"Then do it!" She cried, stretching her arms out on either side of her. "Kill me!"

But Arthur couldn't. He couldn't bring himself to close the space between him and thrust his blade through her heart. The Kevia he had come to know was kind and merciful. A part of him could not believe she had done this on purpose. It was the dark magic inside of her that had taken control. This wasn't her.

He had told the Mother Keeper that he would gladly kill whoever was behind this himself, but he never imagined it would be her. The Mother Keeper had known all along that it had been Kevia but she never said. Did she think it would be easier if they found out themselves? Did she really mean to push Kevia over the edge into the pit in hopes of killing her and ending this? But she hadn't meant to push Percival as well.

Arthur looked at the poor girl in front of him. Her plea for death broke his heart. In the end he lowered his sword.

"What are you waiting for?" She didn't understand. He wasn't going to do it. "Fine, then I'll do it myself."

She drew the small dagger from her belt and was ready to plunge it into her own heart but Merlin got there first. Suddenly he was in front of her. He grabbed her wrist before she had the chance to complete the movement. She looked up at him in surprise.

"What are you doing?" She cried. "I have to die or hundreds others will. What is one life in exchange for hundreds of others to be saved?"

Merlin was silent for a moment. "In the past I thought I could sacrifice myself to save Camelot and it would solve everything. I never thought about those who would be hurt by my passing. I didn't think about the people who would mourn me."

"No one will mourn me." Kevia argued. "Look what I've done."

"Look at me Kevia." Merlin forced her to meet his gaze. "I will mourn you. Just as you mourn Echidna. We will all be hurt if you die."

"I don't understand." She shook her head.

"We care about you and you care about us. That's why you are so willing to die." He held onto her wrist tightly, not letting her go. "To save us."

At that she stopped struggling and her eyes softened. "It didn't work."

"You tried to make us hate you didn't you, so that we wouldn't hurt as much?" She let Merlin take the dagger from her hand. "Why would you think that it would be easier?"

"I don't know." Kevia admitted, lowering her head. "I didn't mean for any of this to happen. I should never have come here. The Mother Keeper was right. She should have left me to die there in the snow."

"But she didn't." Kevia looked up at Merlin. "She saw the potential for you to repent for your past and start a new life."

"Well I messed that up didn't I?" She sounded angry again but it blew away in the breeze. "I just made it worse."

"But you tried."

"Please Merlin." She begged. "I don't want to hurt anyone anymore."

"There really is no other way is there?" Merlin lowered his head as tears came to his eyes.

"No." She put her hand on his, the one that was holding her dagger. "It's my fate. Here and now it must be done. There is no way around it."

It was like what Atticus had said. Arthur thought to himself. Destiny is changeable but fate is eternal. Fate happens in a single moment without a long journey leading up to it. You never know what your fate is until its staring you right in the face. Then you know, without a doubt, that this is it.

"I don't want to." Merlin argued.

"You have to. You must save Camelot. There is no escape from this." Kevia laid her forehead on Merlin's shoulder. "Please Merlin."

"Kevia." He spoke her name one last time. "I'm so sorry."

He took the dagger and plunged it into her heart. His magic spread through the blade and into her body, sending a shock wave through her, right to her heart, stopping it in seconds. She only felt pain for a moment, and then she was gone.

"No!" He heard August shout behind him in pure agony.

Merlin gasped as Kevia went limp in his arms and he pulled out the dagger. The blade fell from his hands, clattering to the dirt. Slowly he lowered her to the ground. The others, getting over their shock, ran forward. Most of them stopped short to only stare down at her. Jade, Morgana, and August dropped down beside her body, sobbing uncontrollably.

"Kev!" August cried, taking her in his arms. "You can't leave me!"

Jade took her friend's hand as if trying to pull her back from the edge but it wouldn't work this time. "I should have saved you." She sobbed. "I should have saved you."

Morgana wrapped her arms around Jade. The two women had been closer then anyone could ever be and they shared their sorrow for the girl they had come to care for.

In the end Merlin was the only one who could have saved Camelot. Edmond would never have been able to kill Kevia, his friend. But the part of Atticus that existed inside Merlin was enough. He leaned over August and slipped the bird's mask from her face. August removed his mask as well, revealing the child that he was.

Gwen gasped and looked away. Arthur held her close and she buried her face in his chest. "She was only a girl." She wept. "She was too young."

Arthur felt like his heart was breaking all over again as he listened to his wife's cries. With the mask Kevia didn't seem quite human but now they could see her for what she really was, just a scared young girl who sacrificed everything to save them. He would never forget her face.

She had messy dark brown hair that she had tried to tie back. Her eyes were closed and she looked so peaceful in August's arms, too young. He could almost imagine what she would say to them if she could.

"Don't be sad for me." She would say.

The cries of the monsters that had invaded Camelot echoed through the streets. They watched as, one by one, they left through the gates, not paying any mind to the mourning group. Just like that they were gone and Camelot was safe, but at what cost.

The people would be returning soon and the story they would tell would be of an evil witch who plotted to destroy their home as so many had before. They will describe her as evil and cruel, with no mercy. That's how the story would be told for generations but only that small group crowded around her small body would know the truth. Only they would remember her name and the kind, merciful, person she had been.

Jade disappeared for a while after that. Morgana tried searching for her several times but they would not see her for many years. Arthur took August in as his ward and he learnt to control the beast inside him but he didn't smile again for a very long time. They rebuilt Camelot, being congratulated for their victory as heroes. But the people didn't understand. It wasn't really a victory because no one had won.

They gave Kevia a secret burial where only those who knew the truth attended. Merlin led them all to the lake of Avalon and they set her adrift on a boat. Setting it on fire when it reached the center. They mourned in silence, remembering the girl who had both destroyed and saved Camelot.

They all cried, because only they would remember.

Thank you for reading and please REVIEW!

All that's left now is the extra chapter which is a teaser for my up coming story called "Puppets".

The first part of the teaser is at the end of my story called "Mercy". The second will be after my story called "Always". The third will be after this one and the fourth, and last, will be after my story "I Will Never Forget".

Big thanks to all those who REVIEWED so far, including: lordstarlight, shadow visor, readernurse, JustYourAverageWhovian, ANNIE, AnotherNamelessAuthor, Josh4eva3, HeartWing3113, MerlinFan1996, trueromantic333, pendafury11, TeganL74, HeyPoncho, RedWolf11, SilverMoonEyes23, Kaulitzfan14, Glitter Photos, CarolinaEirasSa, Laura, Zyxamie, Cinnimania, Storm101, HyaHya, Guest, April29Roses, and RememberTheMuse.

Sorry


	17. I Will Break Them All

**Here is the third part of my teaser for my upcoming story "The Old Mother". It used to be called "Puppets".**

**Part 1: At the end of my story "Mercy".**

**Part 2: At the end of my story "Always".**

**Part 4: The last part of the teaser will be at the end of my story "I Will Never Forget".**

**Its best to read the stories before the teasers because they all tie in together and "The Old Mother" will make more sense if you've read all of them.**

**Hope you enjoy.  
**

I Will Break Them All

Part 3

Her laughter boomed around the small room carved out of obsidian. The furs shook on her back and the bones she wore clacked together as she shook with evil laughter. She could feel all of the pieces falling into place. Soon, very soon, everything would be ready. She stretched her old frail arms out on either side of her in one stiff jerk. Her furs spread out around her as she spun around the empty room, cackling.

She stopped abruptly as a knock came at the only door in the room. Habit forced her to look at her reflection in the dark stonewalls. Her face was as white as snow and she looked as frail as paper. Several cracks could be seen running along her old face. Her grey hair was messy and the best thing about it was that she didn't care. She would not look this way for much longer.

"Come in." She called in her gravely voice.

The metal door swung open to reveal the scarred man, her most loyal servant. He was tall, just skimming the top of the doorframe with his cleanly shaven head. Dark cloaks wrapped the rest of his body and there was a long jagged sword at his side. A black bladed ax was strapped to his back. He had felled many an enemy with that ax but he never smiled, or showed any emotion at all really.

"Is it done?" She asked, ringing her hands.

"Yes, Milady." He bowed his head as he addressed her.

"Did she scream?" The old woman wanted to know all the details.

"She was a fighter, calling out for friends that could no longer hear her lost soul." He described.

"I hope she didn't give you too much trouble." She put her hand up to his face and traced a new scratch that would soon become a permanent scar.

"I watched her moments before she went to the place between places where I caught her. She was strong and brave. She had a kind heart."

"Why should I care about such details?" The crone sneered. "How was her death? I do wish I could have seen the life leave her eyes but unfortunately the walls would not tell me. My sister was always better at conversing with them." She looked at the dark stone and scoffed.

"It was quick Milady, and she went willingly." He would not say it but he had been moved by the bravery she had shown right before the end, the girl in the bird's mask.

"Surprising since I'm sure out of all of them she is one of the few to know of our existence. She may not have expected that she would become our pray though."

"Do you think your sister knew?" He asked.

"What, that the girl was on my list?" She turned up her long pointed nose. "She did try to save her. Yes, I do believe she did, though she did give up trying to save the girl. Typical. She was always such a solitary creature. I have heard that she's become the Mother Keeper though. Now that is out of character. What was she planning?"

"Milady, what if your sister let the girl go willingly? What if this is a part of her plan?" He was hesitant.

"The girl is mine. She has always been mine to claim." She snapped. "My sister is not permitted to directly interfere in my affairs."

"But she has not directly interfered. The girl has strength and she will not be broken easily." He warned. "Be careful or she may be the one to ruin you."

"How dare you doubt my powers." She screeched. "I will not be overthrown by some mere child. I will break her before she has the chance."

"Do not underestimate her." He cautioned. "She may not be alone. I know you've seen glimpses of the future."

"A future that is not set in stone." The crone spat. "If she shows any sign of trouble I will throw her into my prisons."

"But isn't he down there?"

"You speak of that filthy rebellious young man, Will I think it was. He will not be able to withstand my power forever." Her voice rose in volume. "I'll break them both. One by one they will be under my control. Running around the pasts that I've built for them. There is no escape."

"Of course not Milady." He bowed his head. "I was only observing."

Suddenly she was standing with her face inches from his, looking up at him. "Then close your eyes and never doubt me again or I'll throw you in with the rest of them. Don't forget how I saved you."

"Of course not Milady." He would not meet her eye.

"Good." Her voice was smooth and she stepped away. "Now finish the job and bring me the last of the souls on my list."

"Yes, Milady." The scarred man bowed and left the room, closing the metal door behind him.

Her many feet hidden under her furs padded across the floor until she stood in the center.

"I will break them all."

**Thanks for reading and please REVIEW!**

**I hope you will stick around to read "The Old Mother" when it comes out.**


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